Team-by-Team Analysis for the Forthcoming Finals
Group A
This first match at the historic Azteca Stadium will mirror the opener from 2010, when Bafana Bafana drew 1-1 with El Tri. The Mexican team's elimination stage history at the worldwide showpiece features just a single victory, secured against Bulgaria when they last hosted in 1986. The manager, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that squad and will be aiming for a third quarter-final appearance as hosts. South Africa, led by veteran Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their initial finals since they hosted, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite seeing a win over Lesotho given against them for fielding an suspended player.
This will mark Korea Republic's 11th successive finals appearance. Icon Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and finished in third place in the Best Player award when South Korea reached the semi-final in 2002. Hong is now their coach and guided them unbeaten through a anything but straightforward qualifying group. The final side in Group A will be the winner of a UEFA playoff featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.
Group B
The Canadian team have qualified for the World Cup twice and, while Qatar 2022 brought their first goal, it did not deliver their first 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 hinges mostly on whether Italy progress through the European play-off (the remaining three contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).
Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland 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 without defeat from arguably the easiest of the UEFA qualifying groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast players hoping to play at their fourth World Cups. The Qatari team, having ended up in fourth in their third phase qualification group, were given a significant boost by being chosen as a tournament host for the fourth phase and secured progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is selected entirely from the Qatari league.
Group C
Scotland first finals in 28 years looks a lot like their last appearance, when they lost to the Seleção and the Atlas Lions; the Haitian team occupy the spot of Norway. Their primary objective will be to make it to the elimination phase for the first time after 8 previous group-stage exits. 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 drugs test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being deported. They will have limited traveling support due to a travel ban from the USA.
Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third manager 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 upturn in form. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco appear the best of the north African nations, capable both of overwhelming opponents and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a perfect win record.
Group D
At the start of last year, the USA seemed in a dismal condition, suffering defeats 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 apparently begun to get his message understood and in November the USA beat Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will begin against Paraguay, who are playing in their 6th finals. They have won one game at each of the previous five, a statistic that has led to both group phase exits and a last-eight place. Their familiar defensive mindset 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 is without obvious stars, but despite an shaky beginning to the third round of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side made it by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their last two matches. The pool's final team will emerge from the winner of Europe’s Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).
Group E
After back-to-back group phase eliminations, Die Mannschaft are no longer the feared force of old. The shift to a more attacking style has brought a fragility and the group initially looked like posing a huge challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the surprise package of qualification, ending up in second place behind Argentina in South America. While they netted only 14 goals in 18 games, a backline featuring Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, protected by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, conceded a mere five.
Ivory Coast live in a state of constant pessimism, where nothing is ever as good 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 triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were clinical in qualification, netting 25 goals and conceding reply.
The tiniest country ever to reach the finals, Curaçao, were the fourth team drawn, though, making the group look a lot far less intimidating than it might have appeared.
Pool F
Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side maybe lack the star quality of previous Dutch generations, but they qualified without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualifying, consistently looks 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 far the most dominant of the Asian nations in qualifying, suffering one of their 16 games over the two phases, with a total goal difference of 54-3.
Tunisia secured of a third consecutive World Cup berth by dominating a straightforward qualification group, picking up 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are maybe not as defensive as some previous Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 different scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the UEFA play-off (against Ukraine in the semi, 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 famous Cruyff Turn.
Pool G
The Belgian Red Devils and the Pharaohs are emerging from the legacy of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, finding the net eight times but conceding five in two wins over Wales, scoring freely at times, but also struggling to a 1-1 draw away to Kazakhstan.
Egypt are the most decorated side in African history, but having failed to qualify during their golden period 15-20 years ago, they have never fully fulfilled their potential 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 ensured they qualified unbeaten.
A reserved place for Oceania effectively equated to a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who cruised through qualification, winning five games out of five, scoring 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. Team Melli, who were defeated once in a difficult third-round qualification group, are on a list of restricted nations, potentially