Team-by-Team Analysis for the Forthcoming Tournament

Pool A

This opening match at the historic Azteca venue will replay the opener from 2010, when South Africa tied 1-1 with El Tri. The Mexican team's elimination stage record at the worldwide tournament includes just one win, secured against Bulgaria when they last hosted in 1986. The coach, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that team and will be aiming for a third quarter-final appearance as hosts. The South African side, coached by veteran Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, qualified for their first finals since hosting, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite having a win over Lesotho awarded against them for fielding an suspended player.

This will represent South Korea's eleventh successive World Cup qualification. Legend Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and finished third in the Golden Ball voting when South Korea reached the last four in 2002. Hong is now their coach and led them without a loss through a far from easy qualifying group. The fourth side 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.

Group B

Canada have made it for the World Cup on two occasions and, while Qatar 2022 brought their maiden finals goal, it did not bring their first finals point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of probably the most talented squad in their history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How kind the draw looks hinges mostly on whether Italy make it through the European play-off (the other three teams 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 World Cups and were quarter-finalists at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side qualified without defeat from arguably the easiest of the UEFA groups and, with experienced campaigners like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast individuals aiming to feature at their fourth World Cups. The Qatari team, having finished fourth in their third phase qualification group, were handed a major boost by being selected as a host for the fourth round and secured progress with a 2-1 victory over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is drawn entirely from the Qatari league.

Pool C

Scotland's first finals in 28 years bears a lot like their last appearance, when they were defeated to Brazil and Morocco; the Haitian team occupy the spot of Norway. Their primary objective will be to make it to the elimination stage for the first time after eight prior group phase exits. Haiti’s sole previous finals, in 1974, was remembered less for their three losses than for the ordeal that befell midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a drugs test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being deported. They will have limited away support due to travel restrictions involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third manager in a qualifying campaign that included a streak of three consecutive defeats, but there is little risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a clear improvement. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African nations, able both of dominating rivals and playing on the counter, qualifying with a 100% win record.

Pool 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 message understood 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 won one game at each of the prior five, a record that has resulted to both group-stage exits and a quarter-final appearance. Their familiar defensive mindset has not changed: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most fluent Australia team and their squad is without clear superstars, but in spite of an iffy start to the third phase of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their last two matches. The group’s final team will emerge from the victor of Europe’s playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

After back-to-back group-stage eliminations, Germany are no longer the bogeymen of old. The shift to a more progressive style has brought a fragility and the draw initially looked like presenting a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the revelations of qualifying, finishing second behind Argentina in South America. While 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 paltry five.

Côte d’Ivoire exist in a state of constant pessimism, where nothing is ever as good as the golden squad of 15-20 years ago. But since taking charge during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Emerse Faé has proved inspirational. After an improbable continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were clinical in qualifying, netting 25 goals without reply.

The smallest country ever to qualify, the Curaçao team, were the final team picked, however, making the group look a lot less intimidating than it might have been.

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side perhaps lack the galacticos of previous Dutch generations, but they secured qualification without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, always appears a more reliable player with his country's side than at domestic level. They begin against the Japanese team, who will play in their eighth consecutive World Cup, and were by some way the most dominant of the Asian nations in qualifying, losing one of their 16 games across the two phases, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia made sure of a third consecutive finals berth 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 remarkable 14 separate scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it 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 stage game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first performed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Group G

Belgium and the Pharaohs are moving on from the legacy of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were erratic in qualification, finding the net eight times but letting in 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 football history, but having failed to reach the finals 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 cutting edge, but it was a defence that allowed only twice in 10 games that ensured they qualified undefeated.

A guaranteed place for Oceania essentially meant a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who cruised 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 secured their place in North America next summer. Team Melli, who lost only once in a tricky third-round qualification group, are on a travel ban, possibly