Welcome to The Athletic’s 2026 World Cup tactical group guides, walking you through the key battles on the pitch, the players to look out for, and the fun facts to impress your friends.In this article, we break down Group A, containing Mexico, South Korea, South Africa and the Czech Republic.Co-hosts Mexico will be favourites, spurred on by raucous home support in all three of their group games.They kick off the tournament against South Africa, in a repeat of the opening match from the 2010 World Cup, when Mexico were upset by the hosts in a 1-0 defeat. As the lowest-ranked team in the group, South Africa will look to harness that same underdog spirit again.Elsewhere, South Korea remains the Son Heung-min show. Entering the twilight of his career, can the 33-year-old lead his nation into the knockout stages once more?And do not underestimate the Czech Republic. They qualified via back-to-back penalty shootout victories in the UEFA play-offs, and what they may lack in star quality they certainly make up for in mental fortitude.Can Mexico use home advantage to progress to the latter stages of the competition? (Hector Vivas/Getty Images)The gamesMatchday one
Thursday, June 11: Mexico vs South Africa (3pm ET, 12pm PT, 8pm BST) — Estadio Azteca, Mexico City
