The upcoming World Cup is set to be the largest in history, and with this grandeur comes an unprecedented amount of travel for the participating teams. As players crisscross the continent, they will face the challenge of long journeys that could impact their rest and recovery.
For some teams, the tournament schedule means covering vast distances across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The demands of such extensive travel could significantly affect their performance on the field.
An insightful analysis by CSB has shed light on which teams will endure the most daunting travel schedules and which will enjoy a relatively easy ride with minimal back-and-forth journeys.
The study assumed that teams would need to travel from their designated base camps to the stadiums for matches and then return to their base camps afterward, highlighting the logistical challenges some teams will face.
Particularly unlucky is the host nation, Canada, which faces a considerable trek for its opening match. The team must travel from their base camp in Vancouver all the way to Toronto. This journey stands out as the most laborious single-match trip, with a round trip totaling over 6,715 kilometers (4,172 miles).
That is the worst single-match journey for any team, clocking in at a round trip journey of over 6,715km (4,172mi).
Host nation Canada has to travel the farthest of any other nation for one World Cup game
Inversely, Mexico has to travel the least of any team at the entire tournament
The USA comes in the top-15 for the least amount of distanced traveled in the group stage
For the whole tournament, Canada has it the worst of the hosts – mostly thanks to that one trip. Of the 48 teams in the World Cup, Les Rouges clock in at 36th for travel distance.
In the inverse, fellow host nation Mexico is No. 1 for travel distance – having to fly the least of any team from their base camp in Mexico City.
Two of El Tri’s matches will be held at the iconic Estadio Azteca – with one group stage match in between at the Estadio Akron in Guadalajara.
Joining Mexico at the top of the list are Paraguay in second and the Ivory Coast in third.
Paraguay plays all its matches in California and will be based in San Jose. Meanwhile, Ivory Coast plays two matches in Philadelphia and is training at the Philadelphia Union’s stadium.
The United States will be base in Los Angeles where two of their three matches will be played. But their second group game in Seattle extends their travel to see them rank 15th on the list.
Among the favorites to win the tournament, France has it best for the group stage and comes in at seventh. Their base camp in Boston serves as a perfect location for their group matches in New Jersey, Philadelphia and Foxborough.
Argentina, coming in at 11th, is based in Kansas City and plays its first match at Arrowhead Stadium before contesting a pair of games in Dallas.
Michael Olise and France travel the least among the favorites to win the World Cup
Lionel Messi and World Cup holders Argentina come in at eleventh-best for traveling
Meanwhile, Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo will be traveling over 6,000 kilometers this summer
Brazil is the last of the favorites in the top half of the table, coming in at 18th. They’re based at the newly opened New York Red Bulls training facility in New Jersey, serving as a centrally located spot for their games in East Rutherford and Philadelphia before playing Scotland in Miami.
Spain’s ranking of 28th is somewhat deceptive. Their Chattanooga, Tennessee base is perfectly located for their two matches in Atlanta. But a third group stage game against Uruguay in Guadalajara lowers their ranking.
Portugal comes in at 31st. Their base camp in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida serves them well for their final group game in Miami. But before that, they play a pair of matches in Houston.
Germany falls to 32nd because of their spread-out group stage setup. With matches in Houston, Toronto and New Jersey, the Germans settled on Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Of the favorites to win the tournament, England has to travel the furthest – coming in at the fourth-longest traveled team in the World Cup. Their base camp in Kansas City is centrally located in the United States, but after their opening group stage match in Dallas, they’ll need to fly over three hours to Foxborough and East Rutherford.
But even at a distance of 8,979km (5,579mi), the Three Lions just get bumped off the podium as the final team to travel fewer than 9,000 kilometers.
Among the favorites, England log the most miles in the group stage – coming in fourth
But the team traveling the farthest – at over 10,000km – are World Cup debutants Curacao
At third-worst is Austria, clocking in at 9,243km (5,978km). Being based in Santa Barbara, California will help their first match against Jordan in Santa Clara. But their following games in Dallas and Kansas City will leave them tired.
Just ahead of them is Bosnia and Herzegovina, which has one of the more peculiar setups of any World Cup team. The Zmajevi begin their World Cup by setting up camp in St. Louis to prepare for exactly one game in their group – the opener against Canada in Toronto.
After that, Bosnia will travel all the way to Sandy, Utah – the home of MLS’ Real Salt Lake – where they will train for the remainder of the tournament as they play their final two group matches in Los Angeles and Seattle.
But no one has it worse than World Cup debutants Curacao. The Caribbean nation has matches littered all over the country in Houston, Kansas City and Philadelphia.
Rather than choose a more centrally located site in Tennessee or North Carolina, the ‘Blue Wave’ will instead set up their base camp in Boca Raton, Florida on the campus of Florida Atlantic University.
In total, just for the travel to each of the group matches, Curacao clocks in at an improbable 10,122 km (6,289mi) – making them the longest-traveled team at this year’s World Cup.
