Thomas Tuchel expects England squad to 'suffer' in the heat at 2026 World Cup
24 May 2025, 02:31
England boss Thomas Tuchel has predicted a World Cup of "suffering" for his players in the North American heat.
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Tuchel hopes his side can take another step towards qualification for the 2026 World Cup, which is being held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, when they take on Andorra in a qualifier next month.
The hot and humid climate is sure to provide challenges for the players, with some of them due to get a taste of it in this summer's Club World Cup, which is being held in the US.
Tuchel will also be at the tournament on a research mission to get a full flavour of the conditions.
"That is why it is important to see matches now in America and in Miami at three in the afternoon," Tuchel said.
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"I will see that. How it looks and we need to understand how to cool the players down, to drink. What are our options.
"Let's see because it is after the season so it will be very similar. But the actual experience is for the players but I have done pre-season there in Orlando and I will be very surprised if we do not suffer.
"Suffering is one of the headlines for this World Cup."
The German will not go into next summer underprepared, however.
He has switched the first part of the forthcoming June camp to Barcelona, where the match with Andorra will be played, to experience hot conditions while also having tests to monitor how individual players adapt.
"The FA provides support on the highest level to the conditions," he added. "I am curious to go to the Club World Cup and see the stadiums and actually feel the heat and then we will go from there.
"We will test the players how they react to heat and all that stuff. So in a very professional level, we will increase our knowledge about how to cool players down, how they react to heat and all that stuff.
"In a very professional level, we will increase our knowledge of how to cool players down, when to take a cooling break, how to individually cool players down, what helps each players.
"So there is a level of support going on at its highest level at the federation which I am very happy about as it allows me to focus on football."
