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Pool A

This opening game at the historic Azteca Stadium will replay the first game from 2010, when Bafana Bafana tied 1-1 with El Tri. Mexico's knockout phase history at the global showpiece features just one win, secured against Bulgaria when they previously hosted in 1986. The coach, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that squad and will be targeting a third last-eight appearance as tournament hosts. The South African side, led by veteran Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their initial World Cup since hosting, ending above Nigeria and Benin even after having a win over Lesotho awarded against them for using an ineligible player.

It will represent Korea Republic's 11th successive finals appearance. Legend Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished in third place in the Golden Ball award when South Korea made the last four in 2002. He is now their coach and led them without a loss through a anything but straightforward qualifying group. The final team in Group A will be the victor of a European playoff featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

Canada have made it for the World Cup on two occasions and, although Qatar 2022 yielded their first goal, it did not deliver their first-ever point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of arguably the most talented squad in their history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How kind the group appears hinges largely on whether Italy make it through the UEFA playoff (the remaining three teams are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have got through the group stage 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 unbeaten from arguably the easiest of the UEFA groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players hoping to play at their fourth World Cups. Qatar, having finished in fourth in their third-round qualifying group, were handed a major advantage by being selected as a tournament host for the final round and clinched qualification with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is drawn entirely from the domestic league.

Pool C

Scotland's first finals in 28 years bears a lot like their previous outing, when they lost to Brazil and the Atlas Lions; Haiti take the place of Norway. Their aim will be to progress to the elimination stage for the very first time after 8 previous group phase eliminations. Haiti’s only previous World Cup, in 1974, was notable less for their three losses than for the fate that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after testing positive in a drugs test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have limited away support due to a travel ban from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third manager in a qualifying process that featured a streak of three consecutive defeats, but there is little jeopardy in South American qualifying these days. He has overseen a clear upturn in form. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the strongest of the north African nations, able both of dominating rivals and playing on the counter-attack, qualifying with a 100% win record.

Group D

At the start of last year, the United States seemed in a dismal condition, losing 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 understood and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will begin against the Paraguayan side, who are competing in their sixth World Cup. They have won one game at each of the previous five, a statistic that has led to both group phase eliminations and a quarter-final appearance. Their trademark defensive approach has not altered: they managed only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most fluent Australia team and their roster is without obvious superstars, but despite an shaky beginning to the third round of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side made it by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their last two matches. The pool's fourth team will emerge from the winner of Europe’s playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

Following successive group phase exits, 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 posing a huge test to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the revelations 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, shielded by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, let in a mere five.

Côte d’Ivoire exist in a state of permanent pessimism, where nothing is ever as successful as the golden squad of 15-20 years ago. But since assuming control during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Emerse Faé has proved transformative. After an improbable continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were clinical in qualification, scoring 25 goals and conceding reply.

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

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe lack the galacticos of past Dutch generations, but they qualified without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualifying, consistently appears a more effective player with his country's side than at club level. They begin against the Japanese team, who will play in their eighth successive World Cup, and were by some way the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualification, losing one of their 16 games across the two groups, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side secured of a third straight World Cup appearance by topping a straightforward qualifying section, accumulating 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are perhaps not as defensive as some previous Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 separate scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the European playoff (against Ukraine in the semi-final, then either Poland or Albania in the final), that will create a rematch of the group game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first executed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

The Belgian Red Devils and the Pharaohs are moving on from the shadow of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualifying, scoring 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 decorated side in African football history, but having failed to qualify during their peak period 15-20 years ago, they have never fully fulfilled their potential 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 meant they qualified unbeaten.

A guaranteed place for Oceania essentially equated to a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who sailed through qualifying, winning five games out of five, netting 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 were defeated once in a difficult third phase qualifying section, are on a list of restricted nations, potentially