FIFA 2026 World Cup Schedule Released; First Base Camps Detailed
Nine cities in U.S. not hosting games will be among options for participating teams
Posted On: June 12, 2024 By :FIFA has released the first list of Team Base Camp options for the 2026 World Cup with nine U.S. cities not hosting games among the options along with several host cities throughout the U.S. and Mexico.
There are 24 locations in the first list, which FIFA said will be expanded in the coming 18 months. Team Base Camps are where the 48 participating teams may opt to establish 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 nine cities outside of the Host Cities include Chattanooga, Cincinnati, Green Bay, Westfield, Irvine, Louisville, St. Louis, Salt Lake City and San Antonio.
SportsTravel’s coverage of the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup, which will be the biggest ever with 48 teams and 16 host cities spread across three countries, has been extensive. Throughout the process from FIFA’s visiting host city candidates, to the day of the announcement in July 2022 of which cities will host games and an inside view of what it was like, SportsTravel has been detailing the saga including an account from those who were there about the FIFA Observer Program during the 2022 World Cup last winter in Qatar ahead of the schedule announcement in early February.
“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,” said Heimo Schirgi, World Cup chief operating officer. “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 also on Wednesday, to celebrate the two-year countdown to the World Cup, published a more detailed version of the tournament’s match schedule. The United States, which will play two group-stage games in Los Angeles and one in Seattle, would — should it finish first in its group — have a round of 32 game in San Francisco, a round of 16 game in Seattle and quarterfinals in Los Angeles. If the U.S. finishes second in its group, its knockout-round path would start in the round of 32 in Dallas, followed by a round of 16 game in Atlanta and quarterfinal in Kansas City.
Mexico’s first-place group finish path would include knockout round games in Mexico City for the round of 32 and round of 16 before a quarterfinal in Miami. If Mexico finishes second in its group, it would have games potentially in Los Angeles, Houston and Boston. Canada’s first-place group stage finish path would have it play round of 32 and round of 16 games in Vancouver before a quarterfinal in Kansas City; if it finishes second in its group, Canada would have knockout round games in Los Angeles, Houston and Boston.
Among the U.S. host cities that will also have base camps include two options in Atlanta, four options in the Dallas area, three options in Kansas City and one in Philadelphia. 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 Team Base Camps (as of June 12, 2024)
|
City |
Training site |
Paired hotel |
|
Atlanta |
Atlanta United Training Centre |
JW Marriott Atlanta Buckhead |
|
Atlanta |
Kennesaw State University |
InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta |
|
Chattanooga |
Baylor School |
The Read House |
|
Cincinnati |
FC Cincinnati |
To be confirmed |
|
Dallas |
Dallas Baptist University |
Westin Dallas Downtown |
|
Dallas |
FC Dallas Stadium |
Renaissance Dallas at Plano Legacy West |
|
Dallas |
University of Dallas |
Omni Las Colinas Hotel |
|
Dallas-Fort Worth |
TCU |
Sheraton Fort Worth Downtown Hotel |
|
Green Bay |
Lambeau Field |
Lodge Kohler |
|
Guadalajara |
Chivas Verde Valle |
Hard Rock Hotel Guadalajara |
|
Indianapolis — Westfield |
Grand Park Sports Campus |
Renaissance Indianapolis North Hotel |
|
Irvine |
Great Park Sports Complex |
Marriott Irvine Spectrum |
|
Kansas City |
KC Current Training Facility |
Hotel Kansas City – The Unbound Collection by Hyatt |
|
Kansas City |
Sporting KC Training Center |
Sheraton Overland Park Hotel at the Convention Center |
|
Kansas City |
University of Kansas |
Stonehill Lawrence, Trademark Collection by Wyndham |
|
Louisville |
Louisville City |
Omni Louisville Hotel |
|
Mexico City |
Centro de Alto Rendimiento (CAR) |
On-site accommodation (CAR) |
|
Mexico City |
La Nueva Casa del Futbol – Toluca |
DoubleTree by Hilton Toluca |
|
Monterrey |
Rayados Training Centre |
The Westin Monterrey Valle |
|
Philadelphia |
Philadelphia Union |
Hotel Du Pont |
|
St. Louis |
Saint Louis University |
Magnolia Hotel St. Louis |
|
Salt Lake City |
RSL Training Center |
RSL Training Academy Residence |
|
Salt Lake City |
University of Utah |
Hyatt Regency Salt Lake City |
|
San Antonio |
San Antonio Stadium |
Kimpton Santo Hotel |