The 2026 FIFA World Cup is set to take place in the United States, and several teams have chosen their base camps. Among them is Spain, which has settled into a boarding school on the Tennessee River in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Spanish team chose this location over larger cities like Chicago and Los Angeles.
Chattanooga has been embracing its new role as a World Cup host, with giant banners featuring Spanish players and declaring 'Bienvenidos a Chattanooga' greeting La Roja as they arrived at the city's airport. Local residents are donning Spanish jerseys in support of their team, while tickets to watch Spain practice sold out quickly.
Germany is training in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where cobblestone streets and tobacco warehouses share space with German flags and television crews. Meanwhile, Iraq has set up camp at the historic Greenbrier resort in rural West Virginia, which has hosted presidents and foreign leaders.
The choice of base camps was made by teams from a list of FIFA-approved locations across North America. Teams were given priority based on their ranking, with higher-ranked nations getting the earliest picks.