The 2026 World Cup is in full flow, with the quarter-finals starting this week, but which nation has travelled the furthest distance heading into their last eight clash?
Even before a ball has been kicked, the location of the 2026 World Cup has proven one of the hottest topics in the build-up to the tournament, and it’s clear to see why. Spanning three countries and three time zones, the tournament stretches across a vast geographical footprint, with the furthest distance between any two venues sitting at 2,800 miles – all the way from Vancouver to Miami.
As a consequence, the logistics of the tournament will have put every nation’s organisational ability to the test. So which team faces the longest journey between their base camp and their fixtures along the way?
To find out, we calculated the distance between each nation’s base and their group stage match locations as the crow flies, counting each trip as a round journey.
Which nations will travel the furthest distance?
| Nation | Base camp | Group Stage First Game | Group Stage Second Game | Group Stage Third game | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarter-final | Total distance travelled (miles) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | Prairie Village, KS | Dallas, TX | Boston, MA | New Jersey, NJ | Atlanta, GA | Mexico City, Mexico City | Miami, FL | 12,998 |
| Spain | Chattanooga, TN | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta, GA | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Los Angeles, CA | Dallas, TX | Los Angeles, CA | 12,200 |
| Paraguay | San Jose, CA | Los Angeles, CA | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA | Boston, MA | Philadelphia, PA | N/A | 11,142 |
| Switzerland | San Diego, CA | San Francisco, CA | Los Angeles, CA | Vancouver, BC | Vancouver, BC | Vancouver, BC | Kansas City, MO | 10,912 |
| Colombia | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Mexico City, Mexico City | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Miami, FL | Kansas, MI | Vancouver, BC | N/A | 10,860 |
| Morocco | Warren, NJ | New Jersey, NJ | Boston, MA | Atlanta, GA | Monterrey, Nuevo León | Houston, TX | Boston, MA | 8,764 |
| Portugal | Palm Beach, FL | Houston, TX | Houston, TX | Miami, FL | Toronto, ON | Dallas, TX | N/A | 8,480 |
| Egypt | Airways Heights, WA | Seattle, WA | Vancouver, BC | Seattle, WA | Dallas, TX | Atlanta, GA | N/A | 8,366 |
| Canada | Vancouver, BC | Toronto, ON | Vancouver, BC | Vancouver, BC | Los Angeles, CA | Houston, TX | N/A | 8,142 |
| Norway | Greensboro, NC | Boston, MA | New Jersey, NJ | Boston, MA | Dallas, TX | New Jersey, NJ | Miami, FL | 7,578 |
| Bosnia-Herzegovina | Salt Lake City, UT | Toronto, ON | Los Angeles, CA | Seattle, WA | Santa Clara, CA | N/A | N/A | 7,050 |
| South Africa | Pachuca, Hidalgo | Mexico City, Mexico City | Atlanta, GA | Monterrey, Nuevo León | Los Angeles, CA | N/A | N/A | 6,542 |
| Curacao | Boca Raton, FL | Houston, TX | Kansas City, MO | Philadelphia, PA | N/A | N/A | N/A | 6,318 |
| Austria | Goleta, CA | San Francisco, CA | Dallas, TX | Kansas City, MO | Los Angeles, CA | N/A | N/A | 6,250 |
| Algeria | Lawrence, KK | Kansas City, MO | San Francisco, CA | Kansas City, MO | Vancouver, BC | N/A | N/A | 6,172 |
| Japan | Nashville, TN | Dallas, TX | Monterrey, Nuevo León | Dallas, TX | Houston, TX | N/A | N/A | 5,964 |
| Argentina | Kansas City, MO | Kansas City, MO | Dallas, TX | Dallas, TX | Miami, FL | Atlanta, GA | Kansas City, MO | 5,654 |
| Ecuador | Columbus, OH | Philadelphia, PA | Kansas City, MO | New Jersey, NJ | Mexico City, Mexico City | N/A | N/A | 5,566 |
| Senegal | New Brunswick, NJ | New Jersey, NJ | New Jersey, NJ | Toronto, ON | Seattle, WA | N/A | N/A | 5,538 |
| Jordan | Portland, OR | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA | Dallas, TX | N/A | N/A | N/A | 5,406 |
| Brazil | Basking Ridge, NJ | New Jersey, NJ | Philadelphia, PA | Miami, FL | Houston, TX | New Jersey, NJ | N/A | 5,220 |
| Czech Republic | Arlington, TX | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Atlanta, GA | Mexico City, Mexico City | N/A | N/A | N/A | 5,168 |
| Germany | Winston-Salem, NC | Houston, TX | Toronto, ON | New Jersey, NJ | Boston, MA | N/A | N/A | 5,154 |
| New Zealand | San Diego, CA | Los Angeles, CA | Vancouver, BC | Vancouver, BC | N/A | N/A | N/A | 4,958 |
| United States | Irvine, CA | Los Angeles, CA | Seattle, WA | Los Angeles, CA | Santa Clara, CA | Seattle, WA | N/A | 4,750 |
| Turkey | Mesa, AZ | Vancouver, BC | San Francisco, CA | Los Angeles, CA | N/A | N/A | N/A | 4,552 |
| Australia | Berkeley, CA | Vancouver, BC | Seattle, WA | San Francisco, CA | Dallas, TX | N/A | N/A | 4,544 |
| Qatar | Goleta, CA | San Francisco, CA | Vancouver, BC | Seattle, WA | N/A | N/A | N/A | 4,464 |
| DR Congo | Houston, TX | Houston, TX | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta, GA | N/A | N/A | 4,406 |
| Uruguay | Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo | Miami, FL | Miami, FL | Guadalajara, Jalisco | N/A | N/A | N/A | 4,356 |
| Sweden | Frisco, TX | Monterrey, Nuevo León | Houston, TX | Dallas, TX | New Jersey, NJ | N/A | N/A | 4,318 |
| Scotland | Charlotte, NC | Boston, MA | Boston, MA | Miami, FL | N/A | N/A | N/A | 4,194 |
| Netherlands | Kansas City, MO | Dallas, TX | Houston, TX | Kansas City, MO | Monterrey, Nuevo León | N/A | N/A | 4,174 |
| Saudi Arabia | Austin, TX | Miami, FL | Atlanta, GA | Houston, TX | N/A | N/A | N/A | 4,156 |
| Belgium | Renton, WA | Seattle, WA | Los Angeles, CA | Vancouver, BC | Seattle, WA | Seattle, WA | Los Angeles, CA | 4,124 |
| Uzbekistan | Atlanta, GA | Mexico City, Mexico City | Houston, TX | Atlanta, GA | N/A | N/A | N/A | 4,088 |
| Croatia | Alexandria, VA | Dallas, TX | Toronto, ON | Philadelphia, PA | Toronto, ON | N/A | N/A | 4,040 |
| Ghana | Providence, RI | Toronto, ON | Boston, MA | Philadelphia, PA | Kansas, MI | N/A | N/A | 3,856 |
| Ivory Coast | Wilmington, DE | Philadelphia, PA | Toronto, ON | Philadelphia, PA | Dallas, TX | N/A | N/A | 3,316 |
| Cape Verde | Tampa, FL | Atlanta, GA | Miami, FL | Houston, TX | Miami, FL | N/A | N/A | 3,236 |
| Iran | Tijuana, Baja CA | Los Angeles, CA | Los Angeles, CA | Seattle, WA | N/A | N/A | N/A | 2,662 |
| Iraq | White Sulphur Springs, WV | Boston, MA | Philadelphia, PA | Toronto, ON | N/A | N/A | N/A | 2,606 |
| France | Boston, MA | New Jersey, NJ | Philadelphia, PA | Boston, MA | New Jersey, NJ | Philadelphia, PA | Boston, MA | 2,016 |
| Haiti | Atlantic City, NJ | Boston, MA | Philadelphia, PA | Atlanta, GA | N/A | N/A | N/A | 2,004 |
| Tunisia | San Pedro Garza Garcia, Nuevo León | Monterrey, Nuevo León | Monterrey, Nuevo León | Kansas City, MO | N/A | N/A | N/A | 1,998 |
| Panama | New Tecumseth, ON | Toronto, ON | Toronto, ON | New Jersey, NJ | N/A | N/A | N/A | 946 |
| South Korea | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Monterrey, Nuevo León | N/A | N/A | N/A | 792 |
| Mexico | Mexico City, Mexico City | Mexico City, Mexico City | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Mexico City, Mexico City | Mexico City, Mexico City | Mexico City, Mexico City | N/A | 572 |
The disparity between England’s travel distance and Mexico’s is vast. The two nations are at opposite ends of the distance travelled table, with England clocking up just shy of 13,000 miles. Mexico travelled just 572 miles in their campaign before being beaten by the Three Lions.
While Mexico benefitted as co-hosts, the schedule wasn’t as kind to the other hosts, Canada and the United States. Canada had to travel over 8,000 miles, while United States travelled a distance of 4,750 miles.
Overall, nine of the nations playing at the World Cup will have travelled more than 8,000 miles by the time the quarter-finals end. Those who harbour ambitions of reaching the final could well end up touching 15,000 miles travelled to get there.
Whether distance travelled will play any part in nations fortunes this summer remains unclear, but the discourse around the event and locations will surely run and run.
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