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Pool A

This first fixture at the iconic Azteca Stadium will replay the opener from 2010, when Bafana Bafana tied 1-1 with El Tri. Mexico's knockout phase history at the worldwide tournament includes just a single victory, secured against Bulgaria when they previously hosted in 1986. The manager, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that squad and will be targeting a third last-eight berth as tournament hosts. South Africa, coached by experienced Belgian manager Hugo Broos, secured their place for their first World Cup since hosting, ending above Nigeria and Benin despite having a victory over Lesotho given against them for using an suspended footballer.

It will mark South Korea's eleventh straight World Cup appearance. Icon Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished third in the Best Player voting when South Korea reached the semi-final in 2002. Hong is now their manager and led them unbeaten through a far from easy qualifying group. The fourth team in Group A will be the victor of a European qualifying play-off involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

Canada have qualified for the global finals twice and, although Qatar 2022 yielded their maiden finals goal, it did not deliver their first finals point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of probably the best group of players in their nation's history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How kind the draw appears hinges largely on whether the Italian national team make it through the UEFA playoff (the other 3 contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

After failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have navigated the group stage in four of the last five World Cups and were last-eight participants at the past 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 individuals hoping to feature at their fourth finals. The Qatari team, having ended up fourth in their third-round qualification section, were handed a significant advantage by being chosen as a host for the final phase and clinched qualification with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is drawn exclusively from the domestic league.

Pool C

Scotland first finals in 28 years bears a lot like their last appearance, when they were defeated to the Seleção and the Atlas Lions; the Haitian team occupy the place of Norway. Their aim will be to make it to the elimination phase for the first time after 8 previous group phase eliminations. Haiti’s sole prior finals, in 1974, was remembered less for their three losses than for the ordeal that befell midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a doping test, was beaten by Haitian army officers before being deported. They will have limited traveling support due to a travel ban involving 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 risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a clear improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African sides, capable both of dominating opponents and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a perfect win record.

Group D

Early last year, the United States seemed in a dismal condition, suffering defeats 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 ideas understood and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before thrashing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will start against Paraguay, who are competing in their sixth World Cup. They have secured one game at each of the previous five, a record that has resulted to both group-stage eliminations and a last-eight appearance. Their familiar cautious mindset hasn't altered: 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 superstars, but despite an iffy start to the third phase of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their last two fixtures. The pool's fourth team will emerge from the victor 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 introduced a vulnerability and the draw initially looked like posing a huge test to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the revelations of qualifying, finishing second behind Argentina in South America. While they scored 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, conceded a paltry 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 taking charge during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Emerse Faé has proved transformative. After an implausible continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualification, netting 25 goals and conceding none.

The tiniest 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 might have appeared.

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side perhaps do not possess the star quality of past Dutch eras, but they secured qualification unbeaten and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualifying, consistently looks a more effective player with his national side than at domestic level. They open against the Japanese team, who will play in their eighth successive finals, and were by some way the most dominant of the Asian sides in qualification, losing one of their 16 games over the two groups, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side made sure of a third consecutive finals appearance by dominating a manageable qualifying section, accumulating 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are maybe not as dour as some past Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 separate scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the UEFA playoff (against Ukraine in the semi, 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.

Group G

Belgium and the Pharaohs are emerging from the legacy of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, finding the net eight times but letting in five in two wins over Wales, scoring easily 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 qualify 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 ensured they qualified undefeated.

A guaranteed place for Oceania essentially equated to a spot at the finals for the All Whites, who cruised through qualifying, winning five games out of five, scoring 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 only once in a tricky third phase qualification section, are on a list of restricted nations, possibly