In addition to tactics and on-the-field plans, teams will now have to consider the off-the-field logistics of lengthy travel that will run through the three North American host countries: the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Keeping in mind the hundreds if not thousands of miles that the participants will have to cover, travel arrangements and planning is no straightforward task.
In a sport that is often laser-focused on finding and exploiting the marginal gains that can sometimes make or break your quest to win a championship, and one in which the globe's best of the best play for clubs in smaller European nations, there is a lot to keep in mind for every team set to do battle in North America next summer.
Luckily for those who are mapping out their North American plans, there are previous lessons that have been learned by clubs across the continent who know plenty about traversing down those beaten paths.
At the previous 2022 edition in Qatar, national teams quickly traversed a country that's smaller in square miles than Connecticut, but when they arrive in North America next summer, it's safe to say they might need to do just a little more moving around.
2026 World Cup group-stage travel at a glance
• Of the three host nations for next summer's World Cup, Mexico has the most gentle travel for their three group stage games against South Korea, South Africa and a playoff qualifier from UEFA (Denmark, North Macedonia, Czechia or Republic of Ireland), with Canada traveling the longest distances to face Qatar, Switzerland and a different playoff qualifier from UEFA (Italy, Northern Ireland, Wales or Bosnia-Herzegovina). The U.S. will travel between Seattle and Los Angeles for their group matches against Paraguay, Australia and a playoff qualifier from UEFA (Türkiye, Romania, Slovakia or Kosovo).
• Some of the hopefuls to win it all in North America next summer face wildly different travel experiences. Holders Argentina will face little logistical difficulty with their games in Dallas and Kansas City, while 2022 runners-up France also face a generous schedule keeping them in the north-east for the duration of Group I. The biggest losers? England, who will be in Massachusetts and Texas for their games against Croatia, Ghana and Panama.
• The 2026 World Cup across three countries provides more complex travel arrangements than Qatar 2022, for obvious reasons given the smaller size of that host nation, but this might be a lighter load than Brazil 2014, which saw teams traveling on average more than 2,000 miles more during the group stage.
The repercussions of long travel
Some people do postgraduate work in medicine; others dive into philosophy or chemistry. San Diego FC's head of human performance Luke Jenkinson says, "My PhD is investigating the impact of travel in North American soccer."
Jenkinson, author of a paper in review called "Crossing Time Zones and Touch Lines" for the Journal of Sports Sciences, was quick to note what can happen after such lengthy excursions. Like the usual rhythms of a 90-minute game, the personal patterns of fine-tuned players are disrupted by travel fatigue, which can alter their circadian rhythms. Sleep disturbances are an obvious negative result -- any frequent flyer can tell you that -- but it can also change how players can metabolize meals.
"Potential increases with digestive distress, which is an important one, because it's uncomfortable and it's not pleasant," said Jenkinson, who helped San Diego FC achieve MLS's best away record this season. "If we have gastrointestinal distress, the absorption of those nutrients, and in particular, those carbohydrates, can be significantly impacted, and then also from a hydration perspective."
Tired, missing crucial nutrients and probably irritated due to "digestive distress," it's no surprise what happens to teams that don't properly mitigate these issues.
"You can see it so many times. Tons of muscle injuries occur during all those trips and lack of recovery," said Jon Poli, head of physical preparation for the 2025 MLS Cup finalists, Vancouver Whitecaps.
These long trips aren't entirely for sitting still, either; flight time is also valuable recovery time.
"[We] make sure that we get up and move, not just sit in the seats the entire time," said Pacific FC coach James Merriman, who has to make a staggering 5,574-mile round trip (to face HFX Wanderers in Halifax, Nova Scotia) during his furthest away game in the Canadian Premier League. "Make sure that the players are up, getting a little activation and movement, stretching. It's bad, it's tough, it's difficult. But you have to move past it."
Another possible pitfall national teams could face next year -- particularly when needing to cross more than a time zone or two through the scorching summer heat -- is an unexpected one.
"I would say the biggest mistake ... more than anything, teams actually sometimes go a little too early," Poli said. "Some teams will travel two days before and they're trying to transition players. Game time could come around, and the player's circadian rhythm is kind of all out of whack."
With all this in mind, what could be done? For the host countries such as the United States, Canada and Mexico, they will not do much traveling compared to their other competitors. The US and Mexico will even stay in the same region.
The extra 1% to 2%: Mattresses, pancakes, lack of spicy food
Think of a typical flight. After having a few too many beverages en route to your vacation, you're then greeted by the most notorious enemy of anyone on holiday: an uncomfortable hotel bed.
For Mathias Jørgensen, a Denmark international for the LA Galaxy who took part in the 2018 World Cup, this was no problem a handful of years ago.
"There's so many things that go into it to get those extra 1% or 2%. Denmark had a little partnership with a brand called Tempur -- we were traveling with special mattresses so that wherever we went, we had our mattresses," said the 35-year-old defender. "If the players wanted it, they would be transferred to every hotel we stayed at."
In 2018, similar conversations about long distances were happening for the World Cup in Russia. Despite the fact that Denmark traveled 3,852 miles in the group stage -- including to their base camp at the Sheraton Moscow Sheremetyevo hotel -- Jørgensen highlighted his federation's attention to detail that helped them qualify for the knockout round, where he later scored.
"With nutrition, with sleep, with everything," Jørgensen said. "All the small things and getting [it] right."
Regarding nutrition, part of San Diego FC's "fuel and load" strategy prepares four meals from the night before an away match until kickoff on the day of the game. To avoid any stomach problems, there's a limited amount of spicy flavors that go into these meals -- although hot sauce is available. A variety of food options cater to the MLS club's global roster, and there's variation for a wide swath of palates, but there is one prematch secret weapon that helps those who need an extra boost of energy after an extended trip.
"In England, we would have a lot of American-style pancakes as our prematch meal," Jenkinson said. "It's a very easy way to consume levels of carbohydrates that are hyper-palatable."
As well as pancakes for San Diego, morning team walks ahead of away matches are used to increase alertness before kickoff, and depending on the flight, the club can have a dim cabin for rest, or a fully lit plane when attempting to keep their players from going to sleep too early.
With an increase in MLS using chartered flights -- something national teams will have next summer -- there's a flexibility that's available for organizations that can turn planes into mobile locker rooms.
"We're fortunate, obviously, that we fly not on commercial flights," said Poli, who painted a picture of a cabin with Normatec compression boots, electrical stimulators, massages and players stretching. Unlike the CPL, or MLS from the days of 2013 MLS Cup winner Benny Feilhaber, private planes are a world of a difference for those who can use them.
"Sitting middle seat on a Southwest flight is a little different than flying charter," joked Feilhaber.
The mentality game
Logistically, there's also much more that goes into World Cup or club soccer preparation when you consider the small army of coaches, support staff, administrators, communications team members and more that will guide the players.
FIFA, seeking to minimize some of those logistical headaches, has separated the competition into west, central and east regions, thereby ensuring that there will be three days of rest for teams in 103 of the tournament's 104 matches.
According to FIFA, no national team will need to fly coast to coast in the group stage. Base camp selections are also expected to be announced by January.
That said, when discussing travel, there's no overlooking the uncontrollable variables that next summer's weather could bring, from scorching temperatures or thunderstorms. Flight cancellations, delays -- Feilhaber shared a story of once being stuck at an airport for six extra hours -- are par for the course in North America.
A possible final piece for overcoming this beyond mattresses or chartered planes? Whether it be through experience in the more modest CPL, or the World Cup itself, one vital factor that was brought up was the right state of mind.
"I think the most important [thing] is the mentality. ... Try not to make too big of a deal of it," Pacific FC's Merriman said. "If you see players drag themselves through it, or make comments about it, things like that, then for sure you're going to feel the travel, you're going to feel the time difference, all those things."
Jørgensen, in a message to those heading out next summer, stressed that it's an opportunity to take advantage of.
"Being lucky enough to visit different countries is like a blessing," he said. "Recovery is just as much mental as it is physical.
"Come in there with a great mindset, you do your things, you hydrate, you make sure that you've done everything you have, and then you're smiling and enjoying being a part of the biggest tournament in the world, the biggest sporting event in the world."
We'll see who is left smiling after covering thousands of miles next year.
