FIFA World Cup 26™ shares teams’ “homes away from home”; host nations’ potential pathways to glory unveiled

ZÜRICH, Switzerland. June 19, 2024 (FIFA/HCLACC) — FIFA has released the first edition of the online Team Base Camp brochure for the FIFA World Cup 26™, comprising a list of locations where the 48 participating teams may opt to establish their “homes away from home” – the hub from where they will travel to their first three matches and where players, staff and officials will spend the majority of their time during the group stage.

The first edition of the Team Base Camp brochure showcases 24 high-grade locations. Over the next 18 months, the list of potential Team Base Camps will grow, with further options across Canada, Mexico and the USA to be added.

The brochure provides teams with multiple options to consider for their final selection, which they will submit following the Final Draw for the FIFA World Cup 26. The draw, anticipated to be staged in late 2025, will reveal the geographic zones in which teams will play their group matches, further guiding their decisions regarding their respective Team Base Camp locations.

The launch of the first edition of the Team Base Camp brochure comes as FIFA publishes a more detailed version of the tournament’s match schedule, which was first revealed in February this year. The schedule is now colour-coded and spotlights teams’ possible pathways in steering their way from the group stage through to the final.

The new version of the schedule is particularly significant for the host nations – Canada, Mexico and the USA – who can now clearly see the routes that they would have to navigate should they finish first or second in their respective groups.

Nine cities outside of the Host Cities are included in the Team Base Camps brochure – Chattanooga, Cincinnati, Green Bay, Irvine, Louisville, St. Louis, Salt Lake City, San Antonio and Westfield.

Heimo Schirgi, Chief Operating Officer World Cup, said: “Even if a city is not staging matches, a participating team coming to stay creates a strong personal bond with the competition for people locally. It will see them adopt their guests as a second team during the tournament, thereby connecting even more people to the FIFA World Cup.”

FIFA is accepting expressions of interest from other cities and towns across the three host nations to propose facilities as possible Team Base Camps for the tournament. Expressions of interest can be submitted here, with updates to the brochure to be made in late 2024 and throughout 2025.

FIFA World Cup 26™ – List of Team Base Camps (as of 12 June 2024)