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Pool A

This first match at the historic Azteca Stadium will mirror the first game from 2010, when South Africa drew 1-1 with El Tri. The Mexican team's knockout stage record at the global tournament features just a single victory, secured against Bulgaria when they last hosted in 1986. The manager, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that squad and will be targeting a third last-eight appearance as tournament hosts. The South African side, coached by experienced Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, qualified for their first World Cup since hosting, ending above Nigeria and Benin despite having a win over Lesotho given against them for using an ineligible player.

It will represent Korea Republic's 11th consecutive World Cup appearance. Icon Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and finished third in the Golden Ball award when South Korea made the semi-final in 2002. He is now their manager and led them without a loss through a far from straightforward qualification group. The final side in Group A will be the victor of a European qualifying play-off involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Pool B

The Canadian team have made it for the World Cup twice and, while Qatar 2022 yielded their maiden finals goal, it did not deliver their first-ever point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of probably the most talented group of players in their nation's history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How kind the draw appears depends mostly on whether the Italian national team make it through the European playoff (the remaining three contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

After failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have navigated the group stage in four of the last five World Cups and were quarter-finalists at the past two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side qualified unbeaten from probably the easiest of the UEFA groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players aiming to feature at their fourth finals. The Qatari team, having ended up fourth in their third-round qualifying group, were handed a significant advantage by being selected as a tournament host for the final phase and clinched progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is selected entirely from the Qatari league.

Group C

Scotland's first World Cup in 28 years bears a lot like their previous outing, when they were defeated to Brazil and the Atlas Lions; Haiti occupy the place of Norway. Their primary objective will be to progress to the knockout phase for the very first time after 8 prior group-stage eliminations. Haiti’s only previous finals, in 1974, was notable less for their three defeats than for the ordeal that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after testing positive in a drugs test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being deported. They will have restricted away support due to travel restrictions from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third manager in a qualification campaign that included a streak of three consecutive defeats, but there is little risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a clear improvement. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the strongest of the north African nations, capable both of dominating opponents and playing on the counter-attack, securing qualification with a perfect record.

Group D

Early last year, the USA seemed in a poor condition, losing to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League and to Turkey and Switzerland in friendlies. But over the past year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently begun to get his ideas across and in November the USA beat Paraguay before thrashing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will begin against the Paraguayan side, who are competing in their sixth World Cup. They have won one game at each of the prior five, a record that has resulted to both group-stage eliminations and a quarter-final appearance. Their trademark cautious mindset has not altered: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most fluent Australia side and their roster is without clear superstars, but in spite of an shaky start to the third phase of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side made it by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their final two matches. The pool's final team will come from the victor of Europe’s Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

After back-to-back group phase exits, Germany are no longer the feared force of old. The shift to a more attacking philosophy has brought a vulnerability and the draw initially looked like presenting a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the surprise package of qualification, finishing in second place behind Argentina in South America. While they scored only 14 goals in 18 games, a backline including Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, protected by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, let in a mere five.

Ivory Coast exist in a state of permanent declinism, where nothing is ever as successful as the golden squad of 15-20 years ago. But since taking charge during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Emerse Faé has proved inspirational. Following an implausible continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were clinical in qualification, scoring 25 goals and conceding none.

The tiniest country ever to reach the finals, Curaçao, were the final team drawn, though, making the group look a lot far less daunting than it might have been.

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe do not possess the galacticos of past Dutch eras, but they qualified unbeaten and Memphis Depay, who bagged eight goals in qualifying, always looks a more reliable performer with his country's side than at domestic level. They open against Japan, who will participate in their eighth consecutive World Cup, and were by far the most dominant of the Asian nations in qualification, suffering one of their 16 games across the two phases, with a total goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia made sure of a third consecutive World Cup appearance by dominating a straightforward qualification group, accumulating 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are perhaps not as defensive as some previous Tunisian sides; they had a remarkable 14 separate scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress through the UEFA play-off (against Ukraine in the semi, then either Poland or Albania in the final), that will set up a rematch of the group game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first executed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

The Belgian Red Devils and the Pharaohs are emerging from the shadow of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualifying, finding the net eight times but conceding five in two wins over Wales, scoring freely at times, but also struggling to a 1-1 draw away to Kazakhstan.

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

A guaranteed place for Oceania essentially equated to a spot at the finals for the All Whites, who sailed 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 once in a difficult third phase qualification section, are on a list of restricted nations, potentially