Group A at the 2026 FIFA World Cup will feature co-hosts Mexico, Czechia, South Africa and South Korea.
The top two teams from each group, as well as the top eight third-place finishers, advance to the knockout phase (Round of 32).
Here’s what awaits in Group A during the expanded 48-team tournament, which will unfold from June 11 to July 19 across the United States, Mexico and Canada.
- FIFA World Ranking: 15th
- How they qualified: Auto-qualified as host nation
- Head coach: Javier Aguirre
- Raúl Jiménez: El Tri’s third all-time leading scorer with 44 goals, Jiménez has spent over a decade playing in Europe’s top leagues and currently plies his trade with English club Fulham.
- Edson Álvarez: Mexico’s captain, Álvarez plays for Turkish giants Fenerbahçe and provides defensive solidity as either a holding midfielder or center back.
- Guillermo Ochoa: At age 40, the legendary “Memo” made history as the first goalkeeper to be called up to six World Cups.
- Gilberto Mora: The 17-year-old Club Tijuana phenom is considered one of the top teenage prospects worldwide. He scored LIGA MX’s lone goal at the 2025 MLS All-Star Game.
Mexico will be making their 18th World Cup appearance and ninth straight trip.
El Tri have twice reached the quarterfinals, both times as tournament hosts (1970, ’86).
Can Mexico repeat, or even surpass, their previous quarterfinal runs as World Cup hosts? The pressure is on head coach Javier Aguirre and his squad this summer.
- FIFA World Ranking: 25th
- How they qualified: AFC qualification third round Group B winners
- Head coach: Hong Myung-Bo
- Son Heung-Min: A South Korean legend, Son has a league-best nine assists with LAFC this season after joining the Black & Gold last summer from Tottenham Hotspur. He is South Korea’s all-time leader in appearances (145) and second in goals (56).
- Kim Min-Jae: The center back helped Bayern Munich win a second-straight German Bundesliga title while allowing just 36 goals during the 2025-26 season.
- Lee Kang-In: South Korea’s Footballer of the Year for 2025, Lee became the second Asian player in history to win the UEFA Champions League last year with French titans Paris Saint-Germain before repeating the feat in 2026.
South Korea have qualified for 12 World Cups, and this summer’s tournament will be their 11th straight appearance.
They co-hosted the 2002 edition of the competition along with Japan, delivering their best-ever performance with a fourth-place finish.
South Korea have a bona fide superstar in Son, a strong supporting cast, and a well-established reputation as an Asian powerhouse. A deep run definitely isn’t out of the question.