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Pool A

The initial game at the iconic Azteca Stadium will mirror the opener from 2010, when Bafana Bafana tied 1-1 with El Tri. The Mexican team's elimination phase record at the global tournament includes just a single win, secured against Bulgaria when they last were hosts in 1986. The manager, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that squad and will be aiming for a third-ever quarter-final berth as tournament hosts. The South African side, led by experienced Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their initial finals since hosting, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite having a win over Lesotho awarded against them for fielding an suspended footballer.

It will represent Korea Republic's 11th successive finals qualification. Icon Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished in third place in the Best Player award when South Korea reached the last four in 2002. Hong is now their manager and guided them unbeaten through a far from straightforward qualifying group. The final team in Group A will be the winner of a UEFA qualifying play-off involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Pool B

Canada have qualified for the World Cup twice and, although Qatar 2022 yielded their first goal, it did not bring their first-ever point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of arguably the most talented squad in their history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How favorable the draw appears hinges largely on whether the Italian national team progress through the European playoff (the remaining three teams are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have navigated 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 probably the easiest of the UEFA qualifying groups and, with experienced campaigners like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast players hoping to play at their fourth finals. The Qatari team, having ended up in fourth in their third phase qualifying section, were given a significant boost by being chosen as a host for the final phase and secured qualification with a 2-1 victory over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is drawn exclusively from the domestic league.

Pool C

Scotland's return to the finals in 28 years bears a lot like their previous outing, when they lost to the Seleção and Morocco; the Haitian team occupy the place of Norway. Their aim will be to progress to the knockout phase for the very first time after 8 prior group phase exits. Haiti’s only previous World Cup, 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 doping test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have restricted away support due to a travel ban from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third manager in a qualifying campaign that featured a run of three successive defeats, but there is minimal risk in South American qualifying these days. He has presided over a clear improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco appear the best of the north African nations, able both of dominating opponents and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a perfect win record.

Group D

At the start of last year, the USA seemed in a poor state, suffering defeats to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League and to Turkey and Switzerland in friendlies. But over the past year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently begun to get his ideas understood and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will start against the Paraguayan side, who are competing in their sixth finals. They have won one game at each of the previous five, a statistic that has resulted to both group-stage exits and a quarter-final place. 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 free-flowing Australian side and their squad is without clear stars, but in spite of an iffy start to the third phase of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side made it by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their final two matches. The pool's fourth team will emerge from the victor of Europe’s playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

Following back-to-back group-stage eliminations, Die Mannschaft are no longer the bogeymen of old. The transition to a more attacking style has brought a vulnerability and the draw initially looked like posing a huge challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the surprise package of qualification, ending up in second place behind Argentina in South America. While they scored only 14 goals in 18 games, a backline including Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, protected by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, conceded a mere five.

Ivory Coast live in a state of permanent pessimism, where nothing is ever quite successful as the golden 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 improbable continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualification, scoring 25 goals and conceding reply.

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

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side maybe do not possess the star quality of past Dutch generations, but they secured qualification without losing and Memphis Depay, who bagged eight goals in qualification, always looks a more effective performer 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 far the most impressive of the Asian nations in qualification, suffering one of their 16 games across the two phases, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia made sure of a third consecutive World Cup appearance by topping a straightforward qualifying section, accumulating 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are maybe not as dour as certain previous Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 separate goalscorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress through the UEFA playoff (against Ukraine in the semi-final, then either Poland or Albania in the final), that will create a repeat of the group stage game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first executed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

The Belgian Red Devils and Egypt are emerging from the shadow of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, scoring the net eight times but conceding 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 quite fulfilled their potential on the global stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them attacking threat, but it was a defence 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, 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. Team Melli, who lost only once in a difficult third-round qualification group, are on a list of restricted nations, possibly