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Pool A

This initial game at the iconic Azteca venue will echo the opener from 2010, when Bafana Bafana tied 1-1 with Mexico. Mexico's knockout stage history at the worldwide tournament includes just one win, achieved against Bulgaria when they last hosted in 1986. The manager, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that team and will be targeting a third quarter-final berth as hosts. South Africa, led by experienced Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, qualified for their initial World Cup since they hosted, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite seeing a win over Lesotho given against them for using an ineligible footballer.

This will mark Korea Republic's 11th consecutive World Cup appearance. Legend Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and came in third place in the Golden Ball award when South Korea made the semi-final in 2002. He is now their coach and led them unbeaten through a anything but easy qualification group. The fourth side 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

The Canadian team have qualified for the World Cup on two occasions and, while Qatar 2022 brought their first finals goal, it did not bring their first finals point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of arguably the most talented group of players in their nation's history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. The extent to which kind the group appears depends largely on whether Italy progress through the European play-off (the other 3 teams are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, the Swiss have navigated the group stage in four of the past five World Cups and were quarter-finalists at the past two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket without defeat from arguably the easiest of the UEFA groups and, with experienced campaigners like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players hoping to play at their fourth finals. Qatar, having finished fourth in their third-round qualification section, were given a significant boost by being selected as a host for the fourth phase and secured qualification with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is selected entirely from the domestic league.

Group C

Scotland's return to the finals in 28 years bears a lot like their last outing, when they lost to the Seleção and Morocco; the Haitian team occupy the spot of Norway. Their aim will be to make it to the elimination phase for the very first time after 8 previous group-stage eliminations. Haiti’s only previous finals, in 1974, was remembered less for their three losses than for the ordeal 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 travel restrictions involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third manager in a qualification process that featured a streak of three successive losses, but there is little jeopardy in South American qualification these days. He has presided over a clear improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the strongest of the north African nations, able both of dominating rivals and playing on the counter-attack, securing qualification with a 100% record.

Group 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 seemingly begun to get his message across and in November the USA beat Paraguay before thrashing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will begin against the Paraguayan side, who are competing in their 6th World Cup. They have secured one game at each of the prior five, a statistic that has resulted to both group-stage exits and a quarter-final place. Their familiar cautious approach has not altered: they managed only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualification.

This is not the most fluent Australia side and their squad is without obvious superstars, but despite an shaky start to the third round of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their final two matches. The pool's fourth team will come 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 bogeymen of old. The shift to a more progressive philosophy has introduced a vulnerability and the group initially looked like posing a massive test to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the revelations of qualifying, ending up in second place behind Argentina in South America. Although they netted 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 mere five.

Ivory Coast exist in a state of permanent pessimism, where nothing is ever quite good as the glorious squad of 15-20 years ago. But since taking charge during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, manager Emerse Faé has proved transformative. After an implausible continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, netting 25 goals without reply.

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

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side perhaps lack the galacticos of previous Dutch generations, but they qualified unbeaten and Memphis Depay, who bagged eight goals in qualifying, consistently looks a more effective performer with his national side than at domestic level. They begin against the Japanese team, who will play in their 8th successive finals, and were by far the most impressive of the Asian nations in qualifying, losing one of their 16 games over the two phases, with a total goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia made sure of a third straight finals berth by dominating a straightforward qualifying group, accumulating 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are perhaps not as dour as certain previous Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 different goalscorers in qualification. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the European play-off (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 performed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

Belgium and the Pharaohs are emerging from the legacy of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were erratic in qualifying, scoring the net eight times but conceding five in two wins over Wales, finding goals easily 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 fully done themselves justice on the world stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them cutting edge, but it was a defensive unit that conceded only twice in 10 games that ensured they qualified undefeated.

A guaranteed place for Oceania effectively 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 FIFA-ranked side to have booked their place in North America next summer. Iran, who lost once in a difficult third phase qualification section, are on a travel ban, possibly