🔗 Share this article

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 history at the worldwide tournament features just a single win, achieved against Bulgaria when they previously were hosts in 1986. Their manager, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that squad and will be aiming for a third quarter-final appearance as tournament hosts. The South African side, coached by experienced Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their first finals since hosting, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite seeing a win over Lesotho given against them for fielding an ineligible footballer.

It will represent Korea Republic's 11th successive World Cup appearance. Icon Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished in third place in the Golden Ball voting when South Korea made the last four in 2002. He is now their coach and led them without a loss through a far from easy qualifying group. The fourth side in Group A will be the winner of a UEFA playoff involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Pool B

The Canadian team have made it for the global finals twice and, while Qatar 2022 brought their first finals goal, it did not bring their first-ever point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of probably the best squad in their history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How kind the draw appears depends largely on whether the Italian national team make it through the UEFA play-off (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 initial phase in four of the past five tournaments and were quarter-finalists at the past two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side qualified unbeaten from arguably the easiest of the UEFA groups and, with experienced campaigners like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast players hoping to feature at their fourth finals. Qatar, having ended up in fourth in their third-round qualifying group, were given a significant boost by being chosen as a host for the fourth round and secured qualification with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is drawn entirely from the domestic league.

Pool C

Scotland return to the finals in 28 years bears a lot like their previous outing, when they lost to Brazil and Morocco; Haiti take the place of Norway. Their primary objective will be to progress to the elimination stage for the very first time after eight previous group-stage exits. Haiti’s sole previous finals, in 1974, was remembered less for their three losses than for the fate that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a doping test, was beaten by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have limited traveling support due to travel restrictions from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third coach in a qualification process that featured a streak of three consecutive defeats, but there is minimal jeopardy in South American qualification these days. He has presided over a noticeable improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the strongest of the north African sides, capable both of overwhelming rivals and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a 100% win record.

Group D

At the start of last year, the United States 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 last year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently begun to get his message across and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before thrashing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will start against the Paraguayan side, who are competing in their sixth finals. They have secured one game at each of the previous five, a statistic that has resulted to both group phase eliminations and a last-eight place. Their familiar defensive approach has not altered: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualification.

This is not the most free-flowing Australian side and their roster lacks obvious superstars, but in spite of an shaky start to the third round of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their last two matches. The group’s final team will emerge from the winner of Europe’s playoff 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 transition to a more attacking style has introduced a vulnerability and the group initially looked like presenting a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the revelations of qualifying, ending up second behind Argentina in South America. Although 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, conceded a paltry five.

Ivory Coast 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, manager Emerse Faé has proved inspirational. Following an improbable continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were clinical in qualification, scoring 25 goals without reply.

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

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe lack the star quality of previous Dutch eras, but they secured qualification without losing and Memphis Depay, who bagged eight goals in qualifying, always looks a more reliable player with his national side than at domestic level. They open against the Japanese team, who will participate in their eighth consecutive finals, and were by far the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualifying, suffering one of their 16 games across the two phases, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side secured of a third consecutive World Cup appearance by dominating a straightforward qualifying section, accumulating 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are maybe not as defensive as certain past Tunisian sides; they had a remarkable 14 separate goalscorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the UEFA playoff (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 famous Cruyff Turn.

Group G

Belgium and the Pharaohs are moving on from the legacy of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualifying, finding the net eight times but letting in 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 history, but having not managed to qualify during their golden period 15-20 years ago, they have never quite done themselves justice on the world stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them cutting edge, but it was a defensive unit that allowed just twice in 10 games that ensured they qualified unbeaten.

A reserved place for Oceania essentially meant a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who sailed through qualifying, winning five games out of five, scoring 29 goals, nine of them by Chris Wood, but they are the lowest-ranked side to have secured their place in North America next summer. Iran, who lost only once in a difficult third phase qualification section, are on a list of restricted nations, possibly