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Pool A

The initial game at the iconic Azteca venue will replay the first game from 2010, when Bafana Bafana tied 1-1 with El Tri. Mexico's elimination stage history at the worldwide tournament includes just one win, secured against Bulgaria when they previously 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. South Africa, led by experienced Belgian manager Hugo Broos, secured their place for their first finals since hosting, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite having a win over Lesotho given against them for using an ineligible player.

This will represent Korea Republic's eleventh successive finals qualification. Icon Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and finished in third place in the Golden Ball award when South Korea made the last four in 2002. Hong is now their coach and led them unbeaten through a far from easy qualifying section. The final team in Group A will be the winner of a UEFA playoff involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

The Canadian team have made it for the global finals on two occasions and, while Qatar 2022 yielded their first goal, it did not deliver their first-ever finals point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of probably the most talented squad in their history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How favorable the group looks depends largely on whether Italy progress through the UEFA playoff (the other 3 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 last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket without defeat from arguably the most straightforward of the UEFA qualifying groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players hoping to play at their fourth finals. Qatar, having ended up fourth in their third phase qualification section, were handed a major advantage by being chosen as a host for the fourth phase and clinched qualification with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is selected entirely from the Qatari league.

Group C

Scotland's first finals in 28 years looks a lot like their last appearance, when they lost to the Seleção and Morocco; Haiti take the place of Norway. Their primary objective will be to make it to the elimination stage for the first time after 8 previous group-stage eliminations. Haiti’s sole previous finals, in 1974, was remembered less for their three defeats than for the ordeal 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 coach in a qualifying process that included a streak of three successive losses, but there is little jeopardy in South American qualifying these days. He has presided over a noticeable improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African nations, able both of overwhelming opponents and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a 100% record.

Pool D

Early last year, the United States seemed in a poor condition, 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 seemingly begun to get his message understood and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before thrashing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will start against Paraguay, who are playing in their sixth World Cup. They have secured one game at each of the previous five, a record that has led to both group-stage eliminations and a quarter-final place. Their trademark cautious approach hasn't 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 clear stars, but in spite of an shaky beginning to the third phase of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their final two fixtures. The group’s final team will come from the winner of Europe’s Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

Following successive group phase exits, Die Mannschaft are no longer the feared force of old. The transition to a more progressive philosophy has brought a fragility and the group initially looked like presenting a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the surprise package of qualifying, ending up second behind Argentina in South America. Although 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.

Ivory Coast exist in a state of constant pessimism, where nothing is ever as successful 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 clinical in qualification, netting 25 goals without reply.

The tiniest country ever to qualify, the Curaçao team, were the fourth team drawn, though, making the group look a lot far less intimidating than it might have been.

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side perhaps do not possess the star quality of past Dutch generations, but they secured qualification without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualifying, consistently appears a more effective player with his country's side than at domestic level. They begin against the Japanese team, who will play in their 8th successive finals, and were by some way the most dominant of the Asian nations in qualification, losing one of their 16 games across the two groups, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side made sure of a third straight finals appearance by dominating a manageable qualifying section, accumulating 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are maybe not as defensive as some previous Tunisian sides; they had a remarkable 14 different scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the UEFA play-off (against Ukraine in the semi-final, 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 performed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Group G

The Belgian Red Devils and Egypt are emerging from the shadow of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were erratic in qualifying, finding the net eight times but conceding five in two wins over Wales, finding goals 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 reach the finals during their peak period 15-20 years ago, they have never fully done themselves justice on the global stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them cutting edge, but it was a defence that conceded only twice in 10 games that meant they qualified unbeaten.

A reserved place for Oceania effectively meant a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who cruised through qualification, 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. Team Melli, who lost once in a tricky third-round qualification group, are on a list of restricted nations, possibly