The Three Lions Explore for World Cup Bases Amid Worries of Losing Preferred Location to Netherlands.
The Football Association has dispatched operational staff to the United States this week to inspect potential facilities for the forthcoming global finals, amidst growing apprehensions that their preferred base could be allocated by the Netherlands.
Draw Complexities Alter Plans
Head coach Thomas Tuchel had earlier cleared an FA proposal for England to be based in Kansas after a warm-up training camp in Fort Lauderdale. Yet, following last week's tournament draw, there are now fears that the Netherlands, who have their group stage matches in Kansas, will be given first choice on the desired facility at Sporting Kansas City—a high-performance centre operated by US Soccer.
The world governing body assigns training bases based on geographic location and world rankings if there is competition, with the draw potentially placing the FA against the Netherlands and Argentina for sites in the tournament's south-central region.
Exploring Other Locations
With England's group fixtures scheduled to take place in Dallas, Boston, and New Jersey, the FA is now understood to be exploring alternative options on the east coast. The FA began its search for training bases at the beginning of the year, with Tuchel and technical director John McDermott visiting possible locations during the Club World Cup last summer.
Despite this advanced planning, there was always an acceptance that the official tournament draw could significantly alter their plans.
Knockout Stage Travel Plans
England have the eighth most arduous group stage schedule in terms of travel. Winning Group L would set England on course for a last-32 game in Atlanta, followed by potential last-16 match in Mexico City.
- Significant Departure: The FA may decide to move between venues for the later rounds should England progress, a major shift from its usual protocol of maintaining a fixed tournament base.
- Tournament Organizers Encouragement: FIFA is believed to be actively encouraging such a itinerant strategy for the vast 2026 tournament.
Once the training base is confirmed, the FA will turn its attention to organizing two friendly matches in Florida at the start of June.
