Fifa World Cup draw reaction

By Frank Pingue

Reaction to the 2026 World Cup draw that was conducted in Washington DC on Friday.

GROUP A: Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, European Playoff D

JAVIER AGUIRRE (MEXICO HEAD COACH)

“There are no small opponents, we mustn’t get complacent, we have to work hard. We’ll have to wait to find out who our European opponent will be. We’ll be repeating our opening match (against South Africa) from 15 years ago and we’ll have to be ready.”

GROUP B: Canada, European Playoff A, Qatar, Switzerland

JESSE MARSCH (CANADA HEAD COACH)

“I believe it’s a group we can win and I would have said that no matter who was in the group because I believe in our team, I believe in the strength of our team, I believe in the confidence in our team and playing at home will be a big advantage.

“We’re not going to (be) overconfident, we’re going to be very realistic, we’re going to stay focused, we’re going to go about it in machine-like performances day in and day out like we have the whole time we have been together.”

GROUP D: United States, Paraguay, Australia, European Playoff C

MAURICIO POCHETTINO (US HEAD COACH)

“My message to the players is Paraguay, Australia and the other team (playoff winner) is going to be difficult. We need to prepare like each game is the final of the World Cup. Thinking we should win before we play the games is the wrong mindset.

ALEXI LALAS (AMERICAN SOCCER GREAT)

“If you believe in the soccer gods, you should be thanking them. This is not just a good group, this is a great group, and this is a group that you should expect this United States team, under Mauricio Pochettino, to win and go through. I don’t want to say it’s an easy group, but we also have to be realistic with what we got here.”

GROUP I: France, Senegal, FIFA Playoff 2, Norway

ADRIEN RABIOT (FRANCE MIDFIELDER)

“A fairly strong group, but as we know it’s a World Cup — the teams that are there deserve to be there, and we’ll have to fight to reach the next stage. We’ll need to be in good shape after a very long season, because the teams that will perform best will be those who are physically strongest.”

REUTERS