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Pool A

The first match at the iconic Azteca venue will replay the opener from 2010, when South Africa tied 1-1 with El Tri. Mexico's knockout phase record at the worldwide tournament includes just a single victory, achieved against Bulgaria when they last were hosts in 1986. The coach, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that team and will be targeting a third last-eight appearance as tournament hosts. South Africa, led by veteran Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, qualified for their first World Cup since they hosted, ending above Nigeria and Benin despite seeing a victory over Lesotho given against them for using an ineligible footballer.

It will represent South Korea's 11th successive finals qualification. Legend Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and came in third place in the Best Player voting when South Korea reached the last four in 2002. He is now their manager and guided them without a loss through a anything but straightforward qualifying group. The final side in Group A will be the winner of a UEFA qualifying play-off involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Pool B

Canada have qualified for the World Cup twice and, while Qatar 2022 brought their maiden finals goal, it did not deliver their first finals point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of probably the most talented group of players in their history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. The extent to which favorable the group looks hinges largely on whether the Italian national team make it through the European playoff (the other three teams are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

After failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, the Swiss have got through the group stage in four of the past five World Cups and were last-eight participants at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket without defeat from arguably the easiest of the UEFA qualifying groups and, with experienced campaigners like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast players hoping to feature at their fourth finals. The Qatari team, having finished in fourth in their third phase qualification group, were given a significant advantage by being selected as a host for the final round and clinched progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is selected exclusively from the domestic league.

Group C

Scotland's return to the World Cup in 28 years bears a lot like their previous appearance, when they were defeated to Brazil and Morocco; Haiti take the spot of Norway. Their primary objective will be to progress to the elimination stage for the very first time after eight prior group-stage eliminations. Haiti’s sole prior finals, in 1974, was remembered less for their three losses than for the ordeal that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after testing positive in a doping test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have limited away support due to travel restrictions involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third manager in a qualification campaign that featured a run of three successive losses, but there is minimal risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a clear improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco appear the best of the north African sides, able both of overwhelming opponents and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a 100% record.

Pool D

At the start of 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 friendlies. But over the last year, Mauricio Pochettino has seemingly begun to get his message understood and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will begin against the Paraguayan side, who are playing in their 6th World Cup. They have secured one game at each of the prior five, a statistic that has resulted to both group-stage exits and a last-eight place. Their trademark cautious approach has not changed: they managed only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most fluent Australian side and their squad is without obvious stars, but in spite of an shaky beginning to the third round of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side made it by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their final two fixtures. The pool's fourth team will emerge from the victor of the European Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

After back-to-back group phase eliminations, Germany are no longer the feared force of old. The shift to a more progressive style has brought a fragility and the group initially looked like posing a huge test to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the surprise package of qualification, ending up second behind Argentina in South America. While they netted only 14 goals in 18 games, a defence including Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, shielded by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, conceded a mere five.

Côte d’Ivoire exist in a state of constant declinism, where nothing is ever quite good as the glorious generation of 15-20 years ago. But since assuming control during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Emerse Faé has proved transformative. Following an improbable continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualification, scoring 25 goals and conceding reply.

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

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side maybe do not possess the star quality of previous Dutch generations, but they qualified without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, always looks a more effective player with his country's side than at domestic level. They begin against the Japanese team, who will play in their eighth consecutive World Cup, and were by some way the most dominant of the Asian sides in qualifying, suffering one of their 16 games over the two phases, with a total goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side secured of a third consecutive World Cup appearance by dominating a straightforward qualification group, accumulating 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are maybe not as dour as some previous Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 different scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the European playoff (against Ukraine in the semi, then either Poland or Albania in the final), that will create a rematch of the group game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first executed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

Belgium and the Pharaohs are emerging from the shadow of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were erratic in qualification, scoring the net eight times but letting in five in two wins over Wales, scoring easily at times, but also laboring to a 1-1 draw away to Kazakhstan.

Egypt are the most successful side in African football history, but having not managed to reach the finals during their golden period 15-20 years ago, they have never fully 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 reserved place for Oceania essentially equated to a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who cruised through qualification, 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. Iran, who lost only once in a difficult third phase qualification section, are on a travel ban, potentially