Curacao picks Boca Raton as World Cup base camp. Here’s where other teams will be
Curacao, the smallest nation in history to qualify for the World Cup, will be based in Boca Raton during the tournament this summer.
Kees Jansma, the press officer for the Curacao national team, confirmed to Deporte Awe sports news outlet that the Blue Wave will train at Florida Atlantic University and stay at the Boca Raton Marriott at Boca Center.
Although Curacao does not have any group stage games at Hard Rock Stadium, its federation opted to choose Boca Raton as its team base camp.
The team and its staff will be headquartered there before and between its June 14 match against Germany in Houston, June 20 match against Ecuador in Kansas City and June 25 match against Ivory Coast in Philadelphia.
That will also be the hub for Curacao fans and media.
Curacao, a Dutch Caribbean island 40 miles north of Venezuela, has a population of 156,000 and a land area of 171 square miles. It has a rich baseball history with the most MLB players per capita, including Andruw Jones, Kenley Jansen, Ozzie Albies and Jurickson Profar. Curacao won the 2004 Little League World Series and has reached the final four times.
But this summer, its soccer team will be in the spotlight.
An FAU spokesperson referred all World Cup-related questions to FIFA, which is not expected to announce the full list of team base camps until February or March.
Boca Raton/FAU was the only South Florida listing on the brochure FIFA provided of 64 base camp options that meet its quality standards. But teams are free to secure their own training sites and lodging facilities and some already have.
Inter Miami’s training facility in Fort Lauderdale is expected to land a World Cup team. Other potential training sites include Nova Southeastern University and FIU.
International federations had until January 9 to submit their top five base camp preferences to FIFA.
Considerations for base camps include proximity/easy travel to and from game sites, distance from the airport, privacy, security, quality of training fields and fitness equipment, accommodations for fans and media, and recreational opportunities.
The French Football Federation has confirmed that the French national team will have its base camp at the Four Seasons hotel in downtown Boston. Les Bleus will train at Babson College in Wellesley, which is 15 miles west of Boston.
France opens against Senegal on June 16 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, then will face Bolivia, Iraq or Suriname in Philadelphia on June 22, and closes the group stage against Norway at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on June 26.
Germany announced that it will be based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The team will train at Wake Forest University and stay at The Graylyn Estate, a historic 55-acre, secluded estate.
Croatia’s team base camp will be in Alexandria, Virginia. The team will stay at the Hotel AKA Alexandria and use Episcopal High School for training.
Japan reportedly will be based in Nashville and train at the Nashville SC facilities.
According to the Kansas City Star, The Kansas City area could be the site of four base camps. Argentina (No. 2 in FIFA’s world rankings), England (No. 4) and the Netherlands (No. 7) are all reportedly looking to be based in Kansas City.
The Netherlands and Argentina, led by Lionel Messi, both play group-stage matches at Arrowhead Stadium. Argentina faces Algeria on June 16. The Netherlands play Tunisia on June 25.
Kansas City-area potential training sites include Sporting KC, KC Current, Swope Soccer Village and the University of Kansas.
The World Cup, which is being co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, kicks off June 11 in Mexico City with Mexico facing South Africa. The 48-team tournament concludes July 19 with the final in New York/New Jersey.
Here is the list of matches at Hard Rock Stadium:
June 15: Saudi Arabia vs. Uruguay (Group H)
June 21: Uruguay vs. Cape Verde (Group H)
June 24: Brazil vs. Scotland (Group C)
June 27: Portugal vs. Colombia (Group K)
July 3: Round of 32 (Match 86)
July 11: Quarterfinal (Match 99)
July 18: Bronze Final/Third Place Game (Match 103)