This initial game at the famous Azteca venue will mirror the opener from 2010, when South Africa drew 1-1 with El Tri. Mexico's knockout stage history at the worldwide showpiece features just a single victory, secured against Bulgaria when they last hosted in 1986. Their coach, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that squad and will be targeting a third quarter-final berth as tournament hosts. The South African side, coached by experienced Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, secured their place for their first World Cup since they hosted, ending above Nigeria and Benin even after having a victory over Lesotho awarded against them for using an suspended player.
It will mark Korea Republic's 11th consecutive World Cup appearance. Icon Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished third in the Best Player award when South Korea made the last four in 2002. He is now their manager and guided them unbeaten through a anything but easy qualification section. The fourth side in Group A will be the victor of a UEFA playoff involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.
The Canadian team have made it for the global finals on two occasions and, while Qatar 2022 brought their maiden goal, it did not deliver their first-ever point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of arguably the best squad in their nation's history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How favorable the group looks hinges largely on whether Italy make it through the UEFA 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 last five tournaments and were last-eight participants at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket without defeat from probably the easiest of the UEFA qualifying groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players hoping to feature at their fourth World Cups. Qatar, having finished fourth in their third phase qualification section, were given a major boost by being chosen as a tournament host for the fourth round and clinched qualification with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is drawn exclusively from the domestic league.
Scotland's first finals in 28 years bears a lot like their last appearance, when they lost to the Seleção and the Atlas Lions; Haiti occupy the place of Norway. Their aim will be to make it to the knockout stage for the very first time after 8 prior group phase eliminations. Haiti’s sole previous finals, in 1974, was remembered less for their three defeats than for the ordeal that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a drugs test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have limited traveling support due to a travel ban from the USA.
Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third coach in a qualification process that included a streak of three successive defeats, but there is little risk in South American qualification these days. He has presided over a clear improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco appear the strongest of the north African nations, capable both of overwhelming opponents and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a 100% win record.
Early last year, the USA seemed in a poor 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 seemingly begun to get his ideas across and in November the USA defeated 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 previous five, a statistic that has resulted to both group-stage exits and a quarter-final place. Their familiar defensive approach has not changed: 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 lacks clear superstars, but in spite of an shaky beginning to the third phase of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side made it by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their last two matches. The group’s final team will come from the victor of Europe’s Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).
After successive group phase eliminations, Die Mannschaft are no longer the feared force of old. The shift to a more attacking philosophy has introduced a fragility and the draw initially looked like posing a massive test to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the surprise package of qualifying, finishing in second place behind Argentina in South America. While 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.
Ivory Coast live in a state of constant pessimism, where nothing is ever as successful as the glorious generation of 15-20 years ago. But since assuming control during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Emerse Faé has proved transformative. After an improbable continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, scoring 25 goals and conceding 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 could have been.
Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side maybe lack the galacticos of past Dutch eras, but they qualified unbeaten and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, always appears a more reliable player with his national side than at club level. They open against Japan, who will participate in their eighth successive finals, and were by far the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualification, losing one of their 16 games over the two phases, with a total goal difference of 54-3.
The Tunisian side made sure of a third straight World Cup appearance by dominating a straightforward qualification group, picking up 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are maybe not as dour as certain previous Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 different goalscorers in qualifying. 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 repeat of the group game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first performed the famous Cruyff Turn.
The Belgian Red Devils and Egypt are emerging from the legacy of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualifying, scoring the net eight times but conceding 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 decorated side in African history, but having failed to qualify during their peak 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 allowed just twice in 10 games that meant they qualified unbeaten.
A reserved place for Oceania effectively meant a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who sailed through qualification, 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. Team Melli, who were defeated only once in a tricky third-round qualifying section, are on a travel ban, possibly
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