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Pool A

This opening fixture at the iconic Azteca venue will mirror the opener from 2010, when Bafana Bafana drew 1-1 with El Tri. Mexico's elimination phase history at the worldwide tournament includes just one victory, achieved against Bulgaria when they last were hosts in 1986. The coach, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that team and will be aiming for a third last-eight berth as tournament hosts. The South African side, led by veteran Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their initial finals since hosting, ending above Nigeria and Benin despite seeing a win over Lesotho given against them for fielding an ineligible footballer.

This will mark South Korea's 11th successive finals qualification. Icon Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and finished in third place in the Best Player voting when South Korea made the last four in 2002. He is now their coach and guided them without a loss through a anything but easy qualification group. The final team in Group A will be the winner of a European qualifying play-off involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Pool B

The Canadian team have qualified for the global finals twice and, while Qatar 2022 yielded their maiden finals goal, it did not bring their first-ever point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of probably the most talented squad in their nation's history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How kind the draw looks hinges mostly on whether the Italian national team progress through the European play-off (the other three contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

After failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, the Swiss have got through the group stage in four of the past five tournaments and were quarter-finalists at the past two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side qualified without defeat from probably the easiest of the UEFA groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast individuals hoping to play at their fourth finals. Qatar, having finished in fourth in their third-round qualification section, were handed a major boost by being selected as a tournament host for the fourth round and secured progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is selected entirely from the domestic league.

Pool C

Scotland return to the World Cup in 28 years bears a lot like their previous appearance, when they lost to Brazil and the Atlas Lions; the Haitian team occupy the place of Norway. Their aim will be to progress to the elimination stage for the first time after eight prior group-stage eliminations. Haiti’s sole previous finals, in 1974, was notable less for their three defeats than for the ordeal that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after testing positive in a doping test, was beaten by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have restricted traveling support due to a travel ban from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third coach in a qualification process that featured a run of three successive defeats, but there is little risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a clear upturn in form. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African sides, able both of overwhelming opponents and playing on the counter-attack, securing qualification with a 100% win record.

Group D

At the start of last year, the USA seemed in a poor condition, 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 apparently begun to get his ideas across and in November the USA beat Paraguay before thrashing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will start against Paraguay, who are competing in their sixth World Cup. They have won one game at each of the previous five, a record that has led to both group phase exits and a quarter-final appearance. Their familiar cautious approach hasn't changed: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most free-flowing Australia side and their squad lacks obvious superstars, but despite an iffy beginning to the third phase of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their final two matches. The pool's final team will come from the victor of the European Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

After successive group phase eliminations, Germany are no longer the bogeymen of old. The shift to a more attacking style has introduced a vulnerability and the draw initially looked like presenting a huge challenge 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 scored only 14 goals in 18 games, a defence including 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 constant declinism, where nothing is ever as good as the glorious generation of 15-20 years ago. But since taking charge during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, manager Emerse Faé has proved inspirational. After an implausible continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were clinical in qualification, netting 25 goals without none.

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

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side maybe do not possess the star quality of past Dutch eras, but they secured qualification without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, always appears a more reliable performer with his national side than at club level. They open against Japan, who will play in their 8th consecutive World Cup, and were by far the most dominant of the Asian nations in qualification, losing one of their 16 games over the two phases, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side made sure of a third consecutive World Cup berth by topping a straightforward qualification group, picking up 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are perhaps not as defensive as certain past Tunisian teams; they had a remarkable 14 different goalscorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress 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 stage game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first performed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

Belgium and the Pharaohs are moving on from the shadow of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, scoring the net eight times but letting in five in two wins over Wales, scoring easily at times, but also struggling to a 1-1 draw away to Kazakhstan.

Egypt are the most decorated side in African history, but having not managed to reach the finals during their golden period 15-20 years ago, they have never quite fulfilled their potential on the world stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them attacking threat, but it was a defence that conceded just twice in 10 games that ensured 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 lost once in a tricky third-round qualifying group, are on a travel ban, potentially