Scotland will set up camp at the home ground of Charlotte FC during the World Cup, the Scottish Football Association has announced.
National team coach Steve Clark toured US facilities following Scotland’s draw against Haiti, Morocco and Brazil in December as he looks to find the best location to prepare his side for the group stages.
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The Scottish Football Association has now decided to train at Major League Soccer’s Charlotte FC’s state-of-the-art training facilities, where the team live nearby.
Opening in 2023, Atrium Health Performance Park in east Charlotte is home to Charlotte’s first-team, NextGen and academy teams. The 52,000 sq ft facility has eight pitches and has everything needed as Scotland prepares to return to the World Cup for the first time since 1998.
Scotland will face Haiti in their group stage opener in Boston on Sunday 14 June (02:00 BST).
They then face Morocco again in Boston on Friday 19 June (23:00) before taking on five-time champions Brazil in Miami on Wednesday 24 June (23:00).
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The team is headquartered in North Carolina and flies to and from the host city for each game.
“This will give us the best conditions”
Clark welcomed the decision, saying: “We considered the options for the FIFA nomination based on our own predetermined criteria and Charlotte FC has a top-notch MLS training facility with everything we need to prepare for the competition.
“I would like to add that the staff at Charlotte FC is very welcoming.
“As most of the participating nations have discovered, travel will be a huge factor in this World Cup. Our base in Charlotte is convenient to the airport, with approximately two-hour flights to Boston and Miami for our group stage matches.
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“We hope this will give us the best possible conditions to prepare for the competition, another exciting milestone ahead of the summer.”
World Cup preparations begin to take shape
The confirmation of the Scotland training base is the latest part of the team’s World Cup preparations.
With three friendlies lined up, Clark looks to train his squad for the trials ahead and decide which players will make his final squad.
The first match will be against Japan at Hampden on March 28, followed three days later by Ivory Coast at the Everton Hill Dickinson Stadium in Liverpool.
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Hampden will see off on May 30 against Caribbean side Curacao, the smallest country ever to qualify for the final.
Clark and his team will then fly to the United States to officially begin the countdown to the World Cup, with one more friendly match planned. It is understood Scotland will play a match against Peru in New Jersey as a final warm-up match before facing Haiti.
