🔗 Share this article

Group A

The first match at the famous Azteca Stadium will mirror the first game from 2010, when South Africa drew 1-1 with El Tri. The Mexican team's knockout stage record at the global tournament features just a single win, achieved against Bulgaria when they previously were hosts in 1986. The coach, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that team and will be targeting a third-ever quarter-final appearance as hosts. The South African side, coached by experienced Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their initial World Cup since they hosted, finishing above Nigeria and Benin even after seeing a win over Lesotho awarded against them for fielding an suspended player.

This will represent South Korea's 11th successive finals appearance. Legend 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. Hong is now their manager and guided them unbeaten through a far from easy qualification group. The fourth side in Group A will be the victor 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, although Qatar 2022 brought their maiden goal, it did not bring their first finals point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of arguably the best squad in their history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. The extent to which kind the group looks hinges largely on whether the Italian national team make it through the European playoff (the remaining 3 contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

After failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have got through the initial phase in four of the past five World Cups and were last-eight participants at the past two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket without defeat from arguably the easiest of the UEFA qualifying groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast players aiming to feature at their fourth World Cups. Qatar, having finished in fourth in their third phase qualifying group, were given a major boost by being selected as a host for the fourth round and clinched progress with a 2-1 victory over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is drawn entirely from the Qatari league.

Group C

Scotland first finals in 28 years bears a lot like their previous appearance, when they were defeated to Brazil and the Atlas Lions; Haiti take the spot of Norway. Their primary objective will be to make it to the elimination phase for the very first time after eight prior group phase eliminations. Haiti’s only prior finals, in 1974, was remembered less for their three losses than for the fate that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after testing positive in a doping test, was beaten by Haitian army officers before being deported. They will have limited traveling support due to travel restrictions involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third coach in a qualification campaign that featured a streak of three consecutive defeats, but there is little risk in South American qualifying these days. He has presided over a noticeable upturn in form. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African nations, able both of overwhelming opponents and playing on the counter-attack, securing qualification with a 100% win record.

Pool D

Early last year, the USA seemed in a poor 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 seemingly begun to get his ideas across and in November the USA beat Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will start against the Paraguayan side, who are playing in their sixth World Cup. They have won one game at each of the previous five, a record that has led to both group-stage exits and a quarter-final place. Their trademark defensive approach has not altered: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualification.

This is not the most fluent Australian team and their squad is without obvious 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 intense pressure in their final two matches. The group’s fourth team will emerge from the winner of the European playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

Following successive group-stage exits, Die Mannschaft are no longer the feared force of old. The shift to a more attacking philosophy has introduced a vulnerability and the draw initially looked like posing a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the surprise package of qualification, finishing second behind Argentina in South America. Although they scored only 14 goals in 18 games, a defence including Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, protected by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, let in a paltry five.

Côte d’Ivoire exist in a state of permanent declinism, where nothing is ever as successful as the glorious generation of 15-20 years ago. But since taking charge during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Emerse Faé has proved inspirational. Following an implausible continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, scoring 25 goals and conceding reply.

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

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side maybe lack the galacticos of previous Dutch eras, but they secured qualification without losing and Memphis Depay, who bagged eight goals in qualifying, always looks a more reliable performer with his national side than at club level. They open against the Japanese team, who will participate in their eighth consecutive World Cup, and were by some way the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualification, losing one of their 16 games over the two groups, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia made sure of a third straight World Cup appearance by dominating a manageable qualification group, picking up 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are perhaps not as defensive as certain past Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 separate scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress through the European playoff (against Ukraine in the semi-final, then either Poland or Albania in the final), that will set up a rematch of the group stage game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first executed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Group G

Belgium and the Pharaohs are moving on from the shadow of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, finding the net eight times but conceding five in two wins over Wales, finding goals freely 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 failed to reach the finals during their golden period 15-20 years ago, they have never quite done themselves justice on the global stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them attacking threat, but it was a defence that conceded only twice in 10 games that meant they qualified unbeaten.

A guaranteed place for Oceania essentially meant a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who cruised 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 booked their place in North America next summer. Iran, who were defeated only once in a difficult third phase qualifying section, are on a list of restricted nations, potentially