Group-by-Group Preview for the Forthcoming World Cup

Group A

The first game at the famous Azteca Stadium will mirror the first game from 2010, when South Africa drew 1-1 with El Tri. The Mexican team's knockout phase record at the worldwide tournament includes just a single win, secured against Bulgaria when they previously hosted in 1986. The manager, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that squad and will be targeting a third quarter-final appearance as tournament hosts. The South African side, coached by veteran Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their first World Cup since they hosted, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite having a win over Lesotho awarded against them for fielding an suspended footballer.

It will mark Korea Republic's 11th straight finals appearance. Icon Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished in third place in the Golden Ball voting when South Korea reached the semi-final in 2002. Hong is now their coach and led them without a loss through a anything but straightforward 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

Canada have qualified for the World Cup twice 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 group of players in their history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How favorable the group appears depends largely on whether Italy make it through the European play-off (the remaining 3 teams are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have got through the initial phase 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 arguably the easiest of the UEFA groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players aiming to play at their fourth finals. The Qatari team, having finished fourth in their third phase qualifying section, were handed a major boost by being chosen as a host for the final phase and clinched progress with a 2-1 victory over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is drawn exclusively from the Qatari league.

Group C

Scotland's return to the finals in 28 years looks a lot like their previous appearance, when they lost to Brazil and Morocco; the Haitian team occupy the spot of Norway. Their aim will be to progress to the knockout phase for the first time after 8 prior group phase eliminations. Haiti’s sole prior World Cup, 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 doping test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being deported. They will have limited traveling support due to travel restrictions from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third coach in a qualifying campaign that included a streak of three successive losses, but there is little risk in South American qualifying these days. He has overseen a noticeable improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco appear the best of the north African nations, able both of dominating rivals and playing on the counter-attack, qualifying with a perfect win record.

Group D

At the start of last year, the USA seemed in a dismal state, suffering defeats to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League and to Turkey and Switzerland in friendly matches. But over the last year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently begun to get his message understood and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before thrashing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will start against the Paraguayan side, who are playing in their 6th finals. They have won one game at each of the previous five, a record that has led to both group phase eliminations and a quarter-final place. Their familiar defensive approach has not changed: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most free-flowing Australia team and their squad lacks clear superstars, but in spite of an iffy start to the third phase of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their final two fixtures. The group’s final team will come from the victor of Europe’s playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

After back-to-back group-stage exits, Germany are no longer the bogeymen of old. The transition to a more attacking style has introduced a fragility and the group initially looked like presenting a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the surprise package of qualifying, finishing 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, conceded a paltry five.

Ivory Coast live in a state of constant declinism, where nothing is ever as successful as the golden generation of 15-20 years ago. But since assuming control during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach 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 picked, though, making the group look a lot far less intimidating than it might have appeared.

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe do not possess the galacticos of previous Dutch generations, but they secured qualification unbeaten and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, consistently looks a more effective performer with his country's side than at domestic level. They open against Japan, who will play in their eighth consecutive finals, and were by some way the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualifying, losing one of their 16 games across the two groups, with a total goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia secured of a third straight finals appearance by dominating a straightforward qualification section, accumulating 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are maybe not as defensive as some previous Tunisian sides; they had a remarkable 14 different scorers in qualification. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress through the European 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.

Group G

The Belgian Red Devils and the Pharaohs are emerging 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 freely at times, but also laboring to a 1-1 draw away to Kazakhstan.

Egypt are the most successful 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 world stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them attacking threat, but it was a defence that conceded just twice in 10 games that meant they qualified undefeated.

A guaranteed place for Oceania effectively equated to a spot at the finals for the All Whites, 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 booked their place in North America next summer. Iran, who lost once in a tricky third phase qualification group, are on a travel ban, potentially