World Cup 2026 Group A: Teams, Qualification & Fixtures

The tournament opens here. Host nation Mexico kick the World Cup off at the Estadio Azteca, becoming the first country to host three times. Czechia return as a UEFA play-off qualifier, while South Korea and South Africa bring continental experience.

The four teams

Czechia

UEFA

Qualification: Qualified via the UEFA play-offs after finishing second in their European qualifying group.
Appearances: First appearance as Czechia (10th counting Czechoslovakia era)
Best result: Runners-up as Czechoslovakia (1934, 1962); group stage as Czechia (2006)

Mexico

CONCACAF

Qualification: Automatically qualified as one of the three host nations (alongside the United States and Canada).
Appearances: 18th World Cup appearance
Best result: Quarter-finals (1970, 1986 — both as hosts)

Becomes the first nation to host the men's World Cup three times.

South Africa

CAF

Qualification: Qualified by winning their CAF first-round qualifying group.
Appearances: 4th appearance
Best result: Group stage (1998, 2002, 2010 as hosts)

South Korea

AFC

Qualification: Qualified via the AFC third round, finishing in the top two of their group.
Appearances: 12th appearance, 11th consecutive
Best result: Fourth place (2002, as co-hosts)

Group A fixtures

#	Date	Local	Match	Venue
1	Thu 11 Jun	13:00	Mexico v South Africa	Estadio Azteca, Mexico City
2	Thu 11 Jun	20:00	South Korea v Czechia	Estadio Akron, Guadalajara
25	Thu 18 Jun	12:00	Czechia v South Africa	Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
28	Thu 18 Jun	19:00	Mexico v South Korea	Estadio Akron, Guadalajara
53	Wed 24 Jun	19:00	Czechia v Mexico	Estadio Azteca, Mexico City
54	Wed 24 Jun	19:00	South Africa v South Korea	Estadio BBVA, Monterrey

Times shown are stadium-local. View all kick-off times in your local timezone ›