a day ago
England unhappy with Fifa plan to control where teams stay at World Cup
Thomas Tuchel and the Football Association will lobby Fifa to change new protocols for the World Cup next year that require countries to move to new base camps for each knockout round.
England head coach Tuchel arrives in Florida next week to watch Manchester City play Juventus in Orlando at the Club World Cup on Thursday and also to visit potential base camps.
Those include some in Kansas, the Midwest state that is the approximate geographical centre of the United States.
The FA is keen to put the squad in a place where they can travel relatively quickly to stadium venues although much is unknown until the draw on December 5, qualifying permitting. In such a large country, base camp planning is very difficult ahead of the draw. Kansas is one option that connects to all World Cup venues in less than four hours.
The reorganised World Cup plan from Fifa is that once teams emerge from the group stages, they move according to where the draw takes them – a complete departure from past tournaments. Up to now teams have been based in one place for as long as they stay in the tournament, allowing national associations to build a familiar hub with players' families accommodated close by and – ideally – develop a strong group dynamic.
Fifa has trialled the movable base camp concept at the Club World Cup, currently under way in the US, although not every club has signed up to the idea. Manchester City booked their accommodation in Boca Raton, Florida, before the draw was made and will stay there for as long as they remain in the tournament – flying in and out of match venue cities.
Fifa has asked that nations qualifying for the 48-team 2026 tournament pick venues from those supplied on its official list and then follow the route through the rounds set out by the governing body's organisers after that. There is hope that approach may change.
The FA feels that would undermine the sense that the players get from a familiar 'home away from home' which was part of the tournament successes under Gareth Southgate. Whether it was in Qatar at the Souq Al Wakra hotel in Doha, or based at St George's Park for the Euros in 2021, the team benefitted from a base that was fitted out to suit their needs.
The FA invests much in its base camps – including food, entertainment and pictures of the players' families in their rooms. It is the same for other European nations, with Germany building its 2014 success in Brazil around its base in Bahia.
The US team have elected to stay on the west coast next summer and, as one of the three co-hosts have been able to select their group – Group D – with two games at the SoFi Stadium in California and one in Seattle. The west coast is regarded as more suitable for summer sport with cooler temperatures. With only one more of the 10 predominantly US groups based on the west coast next year, England's chances of playing there are slim. Co-hosts Mexico and Canada will be the top seeds in their groups in their home nations and therefore England are unlikely to be drawn in either of those groups. Some of the 10 groups not featuring Mexico or Canada do include games played in one of those two nations.
With England likely to be among the top seeds for tournament, that opens up the possibility that they will play elsewhere, with the eastern seaboard very hot and humid in June and July. Conditions for elite football are demanding, as the Club World Cup has demonstrated.
As well as other potential base camps around the US, the FA are looking at the three facilities in Kansas City. They include the one belonging to the MLS franchise Sporting Kansas City – the Pinnacle National Development Center which was built seven years ago, and is also used by the US national teams.
