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Group A

The initial fixture at the iconic Azteca Stadium will echo the first game from 2010, when South Africa drew 1-1 with El Tri. The Mexican team's elimination stage record at the worldwide showpiece includes just a single win, achieved against Bulgaria when they last were hosts in 1986. Their coach, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that squad and will be aiming for a third-ever last-eight appearance as tournament hosts. South Africa, coached by experienced Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, secured their place for their initial finals since hosting, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite having a victory over Lesotho awarded against them for fielding an suspended player.

It will represent Korea Republic's 11th straight finals appearance. Legend Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished in third place in the Best Player award when South Korea reached the semi-final in 2002. Hong is now their manager and guided them without a loss through a far from easy qualifying section. The final team in Group A will be the winner of a European playoff featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

The Canadian team have qualified for the global finals on two occasions and, while Qatar 2022 yielded their first finals goal, it did not deliver their first-ever finals point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of probably the most talented squad in their nation's history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How kind the group looks hinges largely on whether Italy progress through the European playoff (the remaining three contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have got through the initial phase in four of the past five tournaments and were last-eight participants at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket without defeat from probably the most straightforward of the UEFA groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players aiming to feature at their fourth World Cups. The Qatari team, having finished fourth in their third-round qualification group, were given a significant boost by being chosen as a tournament host for the fourth phase and secured progress with a 2-1 victory over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is drawn exclusively from the Qatari league.

Pool C

Scotland's first World Cup in 28 years bears a lot like their previous outing, when they lost to Brazil and Morocco; the Haitian team occupy the spot of Norway. Their primary objective will be to progress to the knockout stage for the very first time after eight prior group-stage exits. Haiti’s only prior finals, in 1974, was remembered less for their three losses than for the fate that befell midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a doping test, was beaten by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have restricted away support due to travel restrictions from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third manager in a qualifying process that featured a run of three consecutive losses, but there is little jeopardy in South American qualification these days. He has presided over a clear upturn in form. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco appear the strongest of the north African nations, capable both of overwhelming rivals and playing on the counter-attack, qualifying with a 100% 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 friendlies. But over the past year, Mauricio Pochettino has seemingly begun to get his ideas understood and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before thrashing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will begin against the Paraguayan side, who are playing in their 6th finals. They have won one game at each of the previous five, a record that has resulted to both group-stage eliminations and a quarter-final place. 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 free-flowing Australian team and their squad is without obvious stars, but in spite of an iffy start to the third round of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side made it by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their last two fixtures. The group’s final team will come from the winner of Europe’s playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

After successive group-stage exits, Germany are no longer the bogeymen of old. The shift to a more progressive philosophy has brought a fragility and the draw initially looked like posing a huge test to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the surprise package of qualifying, finishing in second place behind Argentina in South America. While they scored 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.

Ivory Coast live in a state of constant pessimism, where nothing is ever as successful as the glorious squad 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 implausible continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were clinical in qualifying, scoring 25 goals and conceding reply.

The smallest country ever to reach the finals, Curaçao, were the final team picked, though, making the group look a lot less intimidating than it might have appeared.

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side maybe do not possess the star quality of previous Dutch eras, but they secured qualification without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, always looks a more reliable player with his country's side than at club level. They open against the Japanese team, who will participate in their eighth successive finals, and were by far the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualification, suffering one of their 16 games across the two groups, with a total goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia secured of a third consecutive finals berth by dominating a straightforward qualification section, picking up 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are maybe not as dour as certain previous Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 different scorers in qualification. 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 stage game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first executed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Group G

The Belgian Red Devils and Egypt are emerging from the shadow of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, finding the net eight times but letting in 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 successful side in African history, but having not managed 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 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 the All Whites, who cruised through qualification, winning five games out of five, netting 29 goals, nine of them by Chris Wood, but they are the lowest-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, possibly