How Scotland found their base camp for 'travelling' World Cup

ByAmy Canavan

BBC Sport Scotland

An Englishman, an Irishman and a Scotsman were waiting at the door of Charlotte FC's training ground for Steve Clarke's arrival.

On his search for Scotland's World Cup base camp, the head coach found the one in North Carolina, with a wee hand from a few familiar faces.

MLS side Charlotte are coached by Dean Smith, the former Aston Villa manager and pal of Clarke, his assistant is the Scotland boss' former Kilmarnock player, Gary Dicker and the club's technical director is Clarke's ex-St Mirren team-mate, Tommy Smith.

They say it's not what you know, but who you know.

A few other nations checked out the Atrium Health Performance Park, while the Scots searched "most of the East Coast", but Charlotte will be their home from home when they compete in their first World Cup since 1998 - against Haiti and Morocco in Boston and Brazil in Miami.

With both cities around a two-hour flight away, Clarke said he is hopeful the "top" facilities will provide his side with the "best possible conditions" as they make their long-awaited return to the biggest stage of them all.

With the help of Charlotte assistant Dicker and Scotland assistant Steven Naismith, BBC Scotland gets the lowdown on "one of the best facilities in the MLS" and the national team's summer set-up.

Unsurprisingly, a lot of conversations and a lot of checking places out.

Fifa offers a selection of available facilities but each nation will naturally have their own plans and priorities.

For Scotland, Naismith admitted getting it right for "travel and humidity" was paramount.

"It's a travelling World Cup," the assistant coach and Sportscene pundit said.

"We've got two games in Boston, one in Miami, but there's only a limited amount of facilities around Boston.

"That was probably the biggest challenge. We've done a lot of work seeing a lot of training bases - there's a lot on offer - but we're delighted with Charlotte."

Clarke's former Killie midfielder Dicker agreed it's "a really good central base" with flights to both Scotland's match cities only a couple of hours.

"I know it's difficult when at past tournaments it's easier to get around, but you do get used to it here, having an hour, two-hour flight and it not being a big deal.

"We're only 20 minutes from the private airport, so I'm sure they'll fly in and out of there too."

The travel isn't the only thing the Scots will need to adapt to this summer. The heat and humidity is not something they're used to.

Extreme heat during last summer's Club World Cup sparked conversations about this summer's tournament. Benfica's win against Bayern Munich in Charlotte was played at 15:00 local time in sweltering 36C conditions.

"I think the humidity ticks the boxes here as well," Dicker added.

"It's really hot and humid in the summer, which I think will really help them when they are going to Miami because it's going to be so, so hot down there."

In Naismith's words, "world class facilities which are purpose-built for football".

That might sound like the bare minimum, but as he scoured around for the ideal spot, the former international found many were tailored for NFL, basketball or baseball teams.

"You're actually having to compromise a wee bit on the actual facilities at some places," he explained.

"But in Charlotte, they've got the latest technology and recovery. The layout of these are all very much equipped for what we want, what we expect and what the players want day-to-day at their clubs."

Dicker, who played and coached at Brighton, said the club's training ground was one of the most impressive aspects when he made the move across the pond in 2024.

"We've got four grass pitches, a full-size astro pitch and another nine-aside astro," he told the BBC.

"From multiple buildings, meeting rooms, the auditorium, gyms and the canteen, we've got everything pretty close but also in completely separate buildings.

"Real Madrid have been, Inter Milan were here for the Club World Cup, I think we've had four or five 'big' clubs come here for pre-season, so it wasn't a surprise we had a lot of national teams come and look here.

"But we have a decent Scottish connection and I think that helps a lot. There's a comfort there.

"The gaffer here obviously knows Steve well, I think they know they'll be looked after quite well. He worked with John McGinn and a few other Scotland players, so having that connection, understanding what teams need and being flexible with it, really helps."

It's also not just about what the squad and staff need. Their families matter too.

This is the biggest - and potentially longest - experience and tournament many will partake in. And with it being on the other side of the world, many will want their loved ones close by.

But Dicker, who has his wife and children with him, insists there's plenty for families to do.

"You're away for so long, I'm sure most of them are going to come with their families," he explained. "But there's loads of stuff to do here with the kids.

"It's a fast-growing city, which isn't too busy, while you're close to the mountains and sea too.

"Even if they do want to go to Disneyland it's an hour-and-a-half flight to come back and down, it's not far at all."

While Clarke might not want to hear of Andy Robertson running around in Mickey Mouse ears, downtime is a priority for the head coach and his staff, who will be "encouraging their freedom".

"We're away for a long time, so it was important to get that relaxed element too," the assistant coach added.

"It was important that we were not isolated in a training facility that's not in a city, and in Charlotte, there's a lot for the players to do.

"We'll be encouraging them and I'm sure we'll try and get them to follow the routine they have back at home, if that's being able to see family time at certain points or if that's going out to do some shopping in an afternoon.

"Each player's got their own way of working and the manager's very open to allow that to be the feel around the group."