Group A of the World Cup 2026 tends to be overlooked, as it is not one of the most stacked groups on paper. Nonetheless, a possible three teams could advance to the knockouts from this bunch, and Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, and the Czech Republic will fight tooth and nail for those berths.
Make no mistake, these four nations have ballers who can create numerous World Cup 2026 highlights. After all, they all qualified in this tournament for a reason, although the World Cup 2026 odds slightly favour South Korea and the Czech Republic to progress to the knockouts, with South Africa as the huge underdogs.
Group A is headlined by some of the world’s most recognisable veterans who have been there and done that, and they are ready to make noise for their country, starting this June. So today, SBOTOP lists the top stars to watch out for in Group A.
Raul Jimenez, Mexico
With his Fulham contract expiring at the end of the season, Raul Jimenez will likely use the World Cup 2026 as his audition for his next payday, whether it’s in Craven Cottage or somewhere else. The 35-year-old striker can also become Mexico’s all-time leading scorer if he surpasses Chicharito’s 52-goal record this summer, and he’s nine goals away. At 44 goals in 123 caps, Jimenez is the country’s third-leading scorer and ninth-most capped player of all-time.
Mexico notably won the CONCACAF Gold Cup last year, with Jimenez scoring the important goals. He scored the match-winner against Honduras in the semi-finals before scoring the equaliser against the United States in the final (before Edson Alvarez scored the winner in the second half).
Fulham are a few points away from reaching European football next season, thanks to Jimenez’s contributions in the final third. The Mexican hitman is the Cottagers’ second-leading scorer with nine goals and three assists, and reports indicate that the London club is keen on offering Jimenez a new short-term deal.
Jimenez will have help up front in the form of Santiago Gimenez. El Tri also confirmed that they will keep veterans Guillermo Ochoa and Edson Alvarez in the squad, with the former set to play in his sixth and final World Cup.
Son Heung-Min, South Korea
South Korea have retooled their squad ahead of the World Cup, but Son Heung-Min will remain as their skipper. After leaving Tottenham last year, Son took his talents to Los Angeles, and the 33-year-old winger is doing well with LAFC.
This season, Son has yet to notch a Major League Soccer goal, but he remains an influential player for LAFC. That’s because he leads the team in assists with eight so far, and has formed a strong partnership with Denis Bouanga (five goals) in the final third. So, despite his lack of goals, Son is among the highest-paid players in MLS, only behind the evergreen Lionel Messi.
With the Taeguk Warriors, Son will have Cho Gue-Sung, Oh Hyeon-Gyu, Lee Kang-In, Bae Jun-Ho, Hwang Hee-Chan, and Lee Jae-Sung as his running mates up front. South Korea are also strong in the back, with Kim Min-Jae, Kim Ju-sung, Cho Yu-Min, and Hwang In-Beom leading the way.
South Korea have reached the Round of 16 in two of their last three World Cups, and they’re keen to one-up themselves this time around under head coach Hong Myung-Bo.
Patrik Schick, Czech Republic
The Czech Republic are back in the World Cup after failing to qualify four consecutive times, so they’re keen to make their return count. They have a robust European contingent across all areas of the pitch. But in our opinion, their fortunes rest on Patrik Schick’s broad shoulders.
Schick is Czechia’s most accomplished frontman as of this writing. After recovering from his injuries in the past few years, the 30-year-old striker is playing like a man on a mission this term. The Bayer Leverkusen star has 16 league goals – good for third in the Bundesliga Golden Boot race – putting Die Werkself on the cusp of securing European football for the eighth straight year.
He is also the country’s fourth all-time leading scorer with 25 goals and 52 caps. Schick can realistically finish third in the scoring list, leapfrogging Vladimir Smicer (27 goals) during this summer’s quadrennial tournament.
Overall, the Czech Republic has one of the most intriguing squads in the World Cup. Besides Schick, they also have Matej Vydra, Adam Hlozek, Tomas Soucek, Vladimir Darida, Pavel Sulc, Ladislav Krejci, Robin Hranac, Vladimir Coufal, Antonin Kinsky, and Matej Kovar, who can contribute to their cause.
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