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Pool A

The initial fixture at the famous Azteca Stadium will echo the first game from 2010, when Bafana Bafana tied 1-1 with El Tri. Mexico's knockout phase history at the worldwide showpiece includes just a single victory, achieved against Bulgaria when they last were hosts in 1986. Their coach, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that team and will be targeting a third-ever last-eight berth as tournament hosts. The South African side, led by veteran Belgian manager Hugo Broos, secured their place for their initial finals since hosting, ending above Nigeria and Benin despite seeing a win over Lesotho awarded against them for using an suspended player.

This will mark South Korea's eleventh straight World Cup qualification. Legend Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and came in third place in the Golden Ball voting when South Korea made the last four in 2002. He is now their manager and led them unbeaten through a far from straightforward qualifying group. The final team in Group A will be the winner of a UEFA qualifying play-off featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

The Canadian team have made it for the World Cup on two occasions and, although Qatar 2022 brought their first goal, it did not bring their first-ever finals point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of arguably the most talented group of players in their history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How kind the group appears hinges largely on whether the Italian national team progress through the UEFA play-off (the remaining three teams are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

After failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, the Swiss have navigated the initial phase in four of the last five tournaments and were quarter-finalists at the past two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket without defeat from probably the most straightforward of the UEFA groups and, with experienced campaigners like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players aiming to play at their fourth finals. Qatar, having ended up fourth in their third phase qualifying group, were given a significant boost by being selected as a tournament host for the fourth phase and clinched progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is drawn entirely from the Qatari league.

Group C

Scotland first finals in 28 years bears a lot like their last outing, when they lost to the Seleção and Morocco; Haiti take the place of Norway. Their aim will be to make it to the knockout phase for the first time after eight prior group phase eliminations. Haiti’s only prior finals, in 1974, was notable less for their three defeats than for the ordeal that befell midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a doping test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being deported. They will have restricted away support due to travel restrictions involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third manager in a qualifying campaign that included a run of three successive losses, but there is little jeopardy in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a noticeable improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco appear the best of the north African sides, capable both of dominating opponents and playing on the counter-attack, qualifying with a 100% record.

Group D

Early last year, the USA seemed in a poor state, suffering defeats to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League and to Turkey and Switzerland in friendly matches. But over the past year, Mauricio Pochettino has seemingly begun to get his message understood and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will begin against Paraguay, who are playing in their sixth finals. They have won one game at each of the prior five, a statistic that has led to both group phase eliminations and a last-eight place. Their familiar cautious approach has not changed: they managed only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualification.

This is not the most free-flowing Australia side and their squad lacks clear stars, but despite an shaky start to the third phase of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side made it by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their last two matches. The pool's fourth team will come from the winner of the European playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

After successive group phase eliminations, Germany are no longer the feared force of old. The shift to a more attacking style has brought a vulnerability and the group initially looked like posing a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the surprise package of qualifying, finishing second behind Argentina in South America. While they netted only 14 goals in 18 games, a defence featuring Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, protected by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, let in a mere five.

Côte d’Ivoire exist in a state of constant pessimism, where nothing is ever quite successful as the golden generation of 15-20 years ago. But since assuming control during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Emerse Faé has proved transformative. After an implausible continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, scoring 25 goals without none.

The smallest country ever to qualify, the Curaçao team, were the final team picked, however, making the group look a lot less intimidating than it could have been.

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe lack the galacticos of past Dutch eras, but they qualified without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualifying, consistently appears a more effective performer with his country's side than at domestic level. They open against Japan, who will play in their eighth successive finals, and were by far the most impressive of the Asian nations in qualification, losing one of their 16 games across the two groups, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia made sure of a third straight World Cup appearance by dominating a straightforward qualifying section, picking up 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are perhaps not as defensive as some past Tunisian teams; they had a staggering 14 separate scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress through the European play-off (against Ukraine in the semi-final, then either Poland or Albania in the final), that will set up a repeat of the group stage game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first executed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Group G

Belgium and Egypt are emerging from the shadow of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, finding the net eight times but conceding five in two wins over Wales, scoring freely at times, but also laboring to a 1-1 draw away to Kazakhstan.

Egypt are the most decorated side in African football history, but having failed to reach the finals during their peak period 15-20 years ago, they have never quite fulfilled their potential on the global stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them cutting edge, but it was a defensive unit that conceded only twice in 10 games that ensured they qualified unbeaten.

A reserved place for Oceania effectively equated to a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who cruised through qualifying, winning five games out of five, netting 29 goals, nine of them by Chris Wood, but they are the lowest FIFA-ranked side to have booked their place in North America next summer. Team Melli, who were defeated only once in a tricky third phase qualifying section, are on a list of restricted nations, possibly