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Let me get my glasses so I can read that!
FIFA 2026 WC - general
- Thread starter Muz
- Start date
Let me get my glasses so I can read that!
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Highest total travel distances
| Team | Base camp | Group venues | Approx. total travel |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | Kansas City | Arlington, Foxborough, East Rutherford | ~15,500 km |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | Salt Lake City | Toronto, Inglewood, Seattle | ~14,500 km |
| Germany | North Carolina | Houston, Toronto, New York area | ~13,500 km |
| France | Boston | New York, Philadelphia, Foxborough | ~12,500 km |
| Belgium | Seattle area | Seattle, Los Angeles, Vancouver | ~12,000 km |
| Portugal | Palm Beach | Houston, Guadalajara, Miami | ~11,500 km |
| Netherlands | Kansas City | Arlington, Houston, Kansas City | ~11,000 km |
| Argentina | Kansas City | Kansas City, Santa Clara, Arlington | ~10,500 km |
| Spain | Chattanooga | Atlanta, Atlanta, Guadalajara | ~10,000 km |
| Australia | Berkeley | Vancouver, Seattle, Santa Clara | ~9,500 km |
Medium travel totals
| Team | Approx. total |
|---|---|
| Brazil | ~8,500 km |
| Mexico | ~7,500 km |
| Canada | ~7,000 km |
| United States | ~7,000 km |
| Uruguay | ~7,000 km |
| South Korea | ~6,500 km |
| Japan | ~6,500 km |
| Switzerland | ~6,000 km |
| Turkey | ~6,000 km |
Lowest travel totals
| Team | Approx. total |
|---|---|
| South Africa | ~2,000 km |
| Tunisia | ~2,500 km |
| Paraguay | ~3,000 km |
| Qatar | ~3,500 km |
| Morocco | ~3,500 km |
| Senegal | ~4,000 km |
Keeper66
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I don’t know about the other teams, but the distance for Australia seems to be completely wrong. Their base camp is just outside San Fran, travel from SF to Vancouver is about 1300 km, and travel from SF to Seattle is about 1100 km. No air travel required for the SF game. So total air travel distance is probably less than 5000 km.
NicCarBel
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4 of the players are GK's - so it will be one of those 4
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Yeah I just ran it through AI hoping for some indication but you're right.
Just shows how flawed it is that it's probably picked up other words thinking that's a game location.
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DR Congo have cancelled their pre World Cup training camp due the outbreak of an extremely rare variant of the Ebola virus in their country.
• FIFA have published a statement saying they are aware of and monitoring the situation.
• The USA have banned entry for all foreign nationals who had been in DR Congo in the last 3 weeks, but the National Team claim to be safe, as most players have been training in Europe.
• Those members of the country’s World Cup delegation who did return to the DRC during the 21-day period will be subject to quarantine.
• FIFA have published a statement saying they are aware of and monitoring the situation.
• The USA have banned entry for all foreign nationals who had been in DR Congo in the last 3 weeks, but the National Team claim to be safe, as most players have been training in Europe.
• Those members of the country’s World Cup delegation who did return to the DRC during the 21-day period will be subject to quarantine.
Wolfman
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Earlier in the thread I mentioned the possibility of Ivory Coast upsetting Germany, and after seeing both countries' squads I'm feeling pretty good about that call. If the Ivorian attack is all fit and their manager makes the right tactical calls they'll have a front three of Yan Diomande, Yoann Bonny, and Amad Diallo all running at that German defence on the break... it's going to be chaos. If Diomande carries his Bundesliga form over he'll absolutely rinse them by himself, it could be very ugly.
Wolfman
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There's some notable historical trends I've seen mentioned which form an interesting precedent for how this World Cup could play out, for those who enjoy curious patterns, stats, and a bit of superstition:
1) Since the 1998 tournament and the use of FIFA rankings for seeding, the #1 team by ranking at the start of the tournament has never won it; winners have always ranged from rank #2 (multiple teams) to as low as rank #18 (France 98).
2) In the era of the modern FIFA World Cup Trophy (replacing the Jules Rimet trophy in 1970), the defending champions have never defended their title.
3) In the entire history of the World Cup, every winner has been coached by someone born in the winning country.
4) In the entire history of the World Cup, every edition hosted in the western hemisphere has Brazil or Argentina as one of the finalists.
5) In the entire history of the World Cup, every edition hosted in the western hemisphere has a South American player win the Golden Ball/Best Player award.
6) In the entire history of the World Cup, the reigning Ballon d'or winner has never won it.
7) Every country to win the World Cup (with the sole exception of England 1966) has previously finished in the top three in at least one previous tournament (even the early 1930s winners Uruguay and Italy both finished top 3 in previous Olympics tournaments which preceded the creation of the World Cup).
So applying those historical patterns as superstitions to this tournament:
France are ranked #1 and have the reigning Ballon d'or winner (Dembele), so that's a double whammy.
Argentina are the defending champions bringing mostly the same core of players that won it, which historically doesn't bode well.
England, Portugal, Brazil, Morocco, Belgium, Colombia, USA, and Uruguay all have foreign born coaches.
Senegal, Mexico, and Japan (just looking at teams within the top 18 rankings) have yet to finish top three in a previous tournament.
This leaves Spain, Netherlands, Germany, and Croatia as the four remaining teams. The number #2 ranked team at the start of the tournament has won it multiple times, so that's great news for Spain.
So naturally, all signs point to a Spain vs Brazil/Argentina final, with Spain winning their 2nd title while Brazil/Argentina continue the trend of South Americans reaching finals in the western hemisphere and one of their players winning the Golden Ball. Lock it in
1) Since the 1998 tournament and the use of FIFA rankings for seeding, the #1 team by ranking at the start of the tournament has never won it; winners have always ranged from rank #2 (multiple teams) to as low as rank #18 (France 98).
2) In the era of the modern FIFA World Cup Trophy (replacing the Jules Rimet trophy in 1970), the defending champions have never defended their title.
3) In the entire history of the World Cup, every winner has been coached by someone born in the winning country.
4) In the entire history of the World Cup, every edition hosted in the western hemisphere has Brazil or Argentina as one of the finalists.
5) In the entire history of the World Cup, every edition hosted in the western hemisphere has a South American player win the Golden Ball/Best Player award.
6) In the entire history of the World Cup, the reigning Ballon d'or winner has never won it.
7) Every country to win the World Cup (with the sole exception of England 1966) has previously finished in the top three in at least one previous tournament (even the early 1930s winners Uruguay and Italy both finished top 3 in previous Olympics tournaments which preceded the creation of the World Cup).
So applying those historical patterns as superstitions to this tournament:
France are ranked #1 and have the reigning Ballon d'or winner (Dembele), so that's a double whammy.
Argentina are the defending champions bringing mostly the same core of players that won it, which historically doesn't bode well.
England, Portugal, Brazil, Morocco, Belgium, Colombia, USA, and Uruguay all have foreign born coaches.
Senegal, Mexico, and Japan (just looking at teams within the top 18 rankings) have yet to finish top three in a previous tournament.
This leaves Spain, Netherlands, Germany, and Croatia as the four remaining teams. The number #2 ranked team at the start of the tournament has won it multiple times, so that's great news for Spain.
So naturally, all signs point to a Spain vs Brazil/Argentina final, with Spain winning their 2nd title while Brazil/Argentina continue the trend of South Americans reaching finals in the western hemisphere and one of their players winning the Golden Ball. Lock it in
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These players look set to be EXCLUDED from the 2026 World Cup squad!
• Cole Palmer
• Phil Foden
• Harry Maguire
• Luke Shaw
• Adam Wharton
• Jack Grealish
Most have been injured or are total deadwood. Shaw doesn't belong anywhere near the England squad. Colwill and Hall out too by reports.
• Cole Palmer
• Phil Foden
• Harry Maguire
• Luke Shaw
• Adam Wharton
• Jack Grealish
Most have been injured or are total deadwood. Shaw doesn't belong anywhere near the England squad. Colwill and Hall out too by reports.
Beretta
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Jordan Henderson & Ivan Toney lol
looking at that team, that doesn't strike me with any fear
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Thats a lot of oil.... the Russians will be pleased with Donnie.
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Norway have named their final 26-player squad for the World Cup using a pre-recorded video from the King of Norway, with Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard set to lead the side as skipper heading into their World Cup campaign. Hamburger SV keeper Sander Tangvik is also named as part of the playing list as the only uncapped player following an injury to Mathias Dyngeland, whilst former Russia under-21s keeper Nikita Haikin's request to jump ship to Norway was not approved.
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Did FIFA oppose it for some reason or did it not get done in time?
Nikita Haikin actually has quadruple citizenship which is interesting. Born in Israel to a Russian family who moved back to Russia when he was two, has a British passport since he moved to the UK aged seven and was naturalised as a Norwegian citizen this year.
Oh, and he advocates for peace. Legend.
Russia’s Nikita Haikin: ‘I cannot just close my eyes like many people do’
Nikita Haikin returns to London this week with Bodo/Glimt, a long way from life in the Arctic Circle and events involving his home country
www.nytimes.com
patjennings
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I was thinking to myself why the 1994 World Cup in the US didn't seem to lead to the same number of memories as others before and after - then I realised this happened on the first day.
Beretta
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