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Pool A

The initial match at the iconic Azteca venue will mirror the opener from 2010, when Bafana Bafana drew 1-1 with Mexico. The Mexican team's knockout stage history at the worldwide showpiece includes just a single victory, achieved against Bulgaria when they last hosted in 1986. The coach, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that team and will be aiming for a third quarter-final appearance as hosts. South Africa, led by experienced Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, secured their place for their first World Cup since hosting, finishing above Nigeria and Benin even after seeing a win over Lesotho awarded against them for using an ineligible footballer.

This will mark South Korea's 11th successive finals appearance. Legend Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished third in the Best Player voting when South Korea made the last four in 2002. Hong is now their manager and led them unbeaten through a far from straightforward qualification section. The fourth team in Group A will be the victor of a UEFA qualifying play-off featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Pool B

Canada have qualified for the global finals on two occasions and, while Qatar 2022 yielded their first goal, it did not deliver their first finals point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of probably the best 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 draw appears hinges mostly on whether Italy progress through the European play-off (the remaining 3 contenders 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 last five World Cups and were quarter-finalists at the past two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket without defeat from probably the easiest of the UEFA groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have individuals aiming to play at their fourth World Cups. The Qatari team, having finished fourth in their third phase qualification section, were given a significant boost by being chosen as a tournament host for the final round and secured progress with a 2-1 victory over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is drawn entirely from the domestic league.

Pool C

Scotland's first finals in 28 years looks a lot like their previous appearance, when they were defeated to Brazil and Morocco; the Haitian team occupy the spot of Norway. Their primary objective will be to make it to the knockout phase for the first time after 8 prior group phase exits. Haiti’s sole prior finals, in 1974, was notable less for their three defeats than for the fate that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after testing positive in a drugs test, was beaten by Haitian army officers before being deported. They will have restricted traveling support due to travel restrictions from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third coach in a qualifying campaign that included a run of three successive defeats, but there is little risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a clear upturn in form. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the strongest of the north African sides, able both of overwhelming opponents and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a perfect win record.

Pool D

At the start of last year, the USA seemed in a dismal state, losing to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League and to Turkey and Switzerland in friendlies. But over the last year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently 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 the Paraguayan side, who are playing in their sixth World Cup. They have secured one game at each of the prior five, a record that has led to both group-stage exits and a quarter-final place. Their familiar defensive approach hasn't changed: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualification.

This is not the most free-flowing Australia team and their squad lacks obvious stars, but despite an shaky beginning to the third round of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side made it by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their last two matches. The pool's fourth team will emerge from the victor of Europe’s Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

Following successive group-stage eliminations, Die Mannschaft are no longer the feared force of old. The shift to a more attacking style has brought a fragility and the draw initially looked like presenting a huge challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the revelations of qualification, ending up in second place behind Argentina in South America. While they netted only 14 goals in 18 games, a backline 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 live in a state of permanent declinism, where nothing is ever as good 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. After an improbable continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, scoring 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 less intimidating than it could have been.

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe do not possess the galacticos of previous Dutch eras, but they secured qualification without losing and Memphis Depay, who bagged eight goals in qualification, always appears a more effective performer with his national side than at domestic level. They open against the Japanese team, who will play in their eighth consecutive finals, and were by far the most dominant of the Asian nations in qualifying, losing one of their 16 games over the two phases, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side secured of a third consecutive finals berth by topping a manageable qualifying group, accumulating 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are perhaps not as dour as certain past Tunisian sides; they had a remarkable 14 different goalscorers 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 stage game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first performed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Group G

Belgium and Egypt are emerging from the legacy 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 successful side in African football history, but having not managed to qualify during their peak period 15-20 years ago, they have never quite fulfilled their potential on the world stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them attacking threat, but it was a defensive unit that allowed only twice in 10 games that ensured they qualified undefeated.

A guaranteed place for Oceania essentially equated to a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who cruised 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. Iran, who were defeated once in a difficult third-round qualification section, are on a list of restricted nations, potentially