Now it’s clear: At the World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico this summer, the German national team will set up camp in a small town in North Carolina.
Five months before the German national team’s first World Cup group game, the German Football Association (DFB) announced its World Cup quarters. National coach Julian Nagelsmann’s team will live and train between games in the southeastern United States in the state of North Carolina.
Nagelsmann: Short distances Daily training routine decisive
The hotel “The Graylyn Estate” is located in the small town of Winston-Salem. Training takes place on the nearby grounds of Wake Forest University. “We have three football pitches here that are in very, very good condition and meet all the demands we have from a sporting perspective,” Julian Nagelsmann is quoted as saying. And further: “We can reach them on foot or by bike in less than ten minutes. That is a crucial factor. Due to the long distances in the USA, we already cover long distances, which we would therefore like to avoid as much as possible in everyday training.”
The view of the athletic fields at Wake Forest University. The DFB team is training here during the World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico.
Winston-Salem: Everything is manageable in the small town
Since the World Cup venues span four time zones and three countries, the location in Winston-Salem is a bit of a contrast. ARD World Cup commentator Philipp Sohmer was already there and describes the city as “manageable”. There is a small airport nearby from which the team can head to group games in Houston, Toronto and New York. According to the DFB, they are looking forward to the guests on site. Wake Forest University is deeply honored, they say. “It’s great that people here can experience the World Cup with the German team,” said Wake Forest University President Susan R. Wente in the DFB’s statement. Winston-Salem has a population of approximately 250,000 and is an hour and a half from Charlotte, the largest city in the state of North Carolina.
What influence does the World Cup quarters have on success?
The announcement of the World Cup quarters always gets a lot of attention. The picturesque Campo Bahia is said to have played a big role in Brazil winning the World Cup title in 2014. At the 2018 World Cup in Russia, the national team stayed in a rather dreary concrete bunker in Watutinki, just outside Moscow. The result of the tournament: preliminary round exit. Most recently in Qatar, the team was somewhat lonely at the far end of the country and was eliminated after the preliminary round. And now?
This is the DFB team’s World Cup hotel: “The Graylyn Estate” in Winston-Salem/USA.
“The property looks great,” says ARD World Cup commentator Philipp Sohmer. The hotel consists of several stone houses, some with small towers, reminiscent of southern romanticism. “And there is plenty of space, which is always important for the players and the large entourage.” The hotel is located on a park-like area with rolling hills, forest, meadows and water. In total, the complex is 55 hectares in size – with a tennis court and other sports facilities. In terms of climate, the DFB team has to prepare for 25 to 30 degrees and high humidity in Winston-Salem in June.
This is how the DFB team’s arrival is planned
The DFB team is scheduled to travel from Frankfurt to Chicago on June 2nd. There will be a final test match (opponent: USA) before the World Cup in Chicago on June 6th. Then we go to Winston-Salem. Nagelsmann’s team will play the first preliminary round game in Group E on June 14th in Housten against Curacao. The remaining group games against Ivory Coast and Ecuador will take place in Toronto and New York/New Jersey.
