Los Angeles – AFP
Published in: May 18, 2023: 01:33 PM GST
Last updated: May 18, 2023: 01:51 PM GST
Swiss Gianni Infantino, President of the International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA), confirmed on Wednesday evening that the teams participating in the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico will be stationed in “regional gatherings” during the first rounds to facilitate travel.
Speaking in Los Angeles to reveal the official logo and brand of the tournament, Infantino said: The challenges will be all the logistics surrounding the global wedding, which witnesses the participation of 48 teams for the first time in the history of the tournament and is held in three countries for the first time as well, adding: It is a continent, 3 large countries.
He continued: distances, time zones, and climatic differences as well, such as altitude in Mexico, and sea level in other parts. Therefore, it is important for us to create the right environment for the teams and the fans to be in the best possible conditions.
And he added: In the sense of not having to travel a lot, especially in the beginning. So we will create some groups where the teams will be evaluated based on the draw and then they will play their matches in that specific group.
Infantino said travel and the move towards creating teams in the regions were discussed at a meeting in Doha last week of the 32 coaches who participated in last year’s World Cup finals.
He concluded: This was one of the advantages of the World Cup in Qatar, where the player was in bed one hour after the end of the match, but in 2026 there will be some travel but we will coordinate that and make sure that it will be the best possible conditions for the teams.
