🔗 Share this article

Pool A

The initial game at the famous Azteca venue will mirror the first game from 2010, when South Africa drew 1-1 with El Tri. The Mexican team's elimination phase history at the worldwide tournament features just one victory, secured against Bulgaria when they previously were hosts in 1986. The coach, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that team and will be aiming for a third quarter-final appearance as hosts. The South African side, coached by experienced Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their initial World Cup since hosting, ending above Nigeria and Benin even after seeing a win over Lesotho given against them for using an suspended footballer.

This will mark Korea Republic's eleventh successive World Cup qualification. Legend Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and finished third in the Golden Ball award when South Korea reached the last four in 2002. Hong is now their manager and led them unbeaten through a anything but straightforward qualifying 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.

Group B

Canada have made it for the global finals on two occasions and, while Qatar 2022 brought their first goal, it did not deliver their first finals 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 looks depends mostly on whether the Italian national team make it through the UEFA playoff (the other three teams are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, the Swiss have got through the group stage in four of the last five tournaments and were quarter-finalists at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side qualified unbeaten from probably the most straightforward of the UEFA groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players aiming to play at their fourth finals. Qatar, having ended up fourth in their third phase qualifying group, were given a major advantage by being selected as a tournament host for the final round and secured qualification with a 2-1 victory over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is drawn exclusively from the Qatari league.

Pool C

Scotland return to the finals in 28 years looks a lot like their previous appearance, when they lost to the Seleção and Morocco; the Haitian team take the place of Norway. Their aim will be to progress to the elimination phase for the first time after eight prior group-stage exits. Haiti’s sole prior World Cup, in 1974, was notable less for their three defeats than for the ordeal that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a doping test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have limited traveling support due to travel restrictions from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third manager in a qualification process that featured a run of three successive losses, but there is little jeopardy in South American qualification these days. He has presided over a noticeable improvement. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco appear the strongest of the north African sides, able both of overwhelming rivals and playing on the counter, qualifying with a 100% record.

Pool D

Early last year, the United States seemed in a dismal state, losing to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League and to Turkey and Switzerland in friendly matches. But over the past year, Mauricio Pochettino has seemingly begun to get his message understood and in November the USA beat Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will start against the Paraguayan side, who are playing in their sixth finals. They have won one game at each of the prior five, a record that has resulted to both group-stage eliminations and a quarter-final place. Their trademark cautious mindset hasn't altered: they managed only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualification.

This is not the most free-flowing Australian side and their roster lacks obvious stars, but despite an iffy start to the third phase of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their last two fixtures. The group’s final team will emerge from the victor of Europe’s Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

Following back-to-back group phase exits, Germany are no longer the bogeymen of old. The shift to a more progressive philosophy has brought a vulnerability and the draw initially looked like presenting a huge challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the revelations of qualification, ending up in second place behind Argentina in South America. While they netted 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 exist in a state of constant pessimism, where nothing is ever as successful as the golden generation of 15-20 years ago. But since taking charge during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, manager Emerse Faé has proved transformative. Following an implausible continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, netting 25 goals without reply.

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

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side perhaps do not possess the star quality of past Dutch generations, but they qualified unbeaten and Memphis Depay, who bagged eight goals in qualifying, always appears a more effective player 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 some way the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualifying, suffering one of their 16 games across the two groups, with a total goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side made sure of a third straight World Cup berth by dominating a straightforward qualifying group, accumulating 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are maybe not as defensive as some previous Tunisian sides; they had a remarkable 14 different 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 set up a rematch of the group game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first performed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

The Belgian Red Devils and Egypt are moving on from the shadow of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were erratic in qualifying, scoring the net eight times but letting in 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 decorated side in African football history, but having not managed to reach the finals 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 defence that conceded only twice in 10 games that ensured they qualified unbeaten.

A guaranteed place for Oceania effectively meant a spot at the finals for the All Whites, who cruised through qualification, 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 secured their place in North America next summer. Iran, who were defeated only once in a tricky third phase qualifying group, are on a travel ban, potentially