World Cup 2026: England keep Mexico venue quiet to avoid noisy locals
England is taking precautions to prevent noisy locals who want to disturb the players’ rest and sleep before they arrive in Mexico to prevent their preparations from being disrupted.
Thomas Tuchel’s team will face Mexico in their World Cup last 16 match on Sunday (Monday 01:00 BST), live on BBC One and iPlayer.
The team will arrive in Mexico City on Friday and spend two nights in the capital before the match.
Mexico’s last 32 opponents, Ecuador, complained to FIFA after their team was deliberately kept awake late at night by noisy Mexican fans wielding loudspeakers, horns and motorbikes in front of their hotel.
The Ecuadorian team stayed at the Westin Hotel in Mexico City and while England wanted to keep their location secret, there are concerns that the location would eventually be leaked to social media.
With this in mind, England players and staff who do not bring their own sleeping devices such as earplugs or sleeping bands will be offered natural sleep aids or white noise sound machines to ensure sleep is not affected.
Arriving two days before the match means a change in schedule for England, who usually arrive in the host city the night before.
However, FIFA requests teams to train semi-openly the day before the match.
England had been holding it in Kansas until today before flying to the US city where the match would be played.
However, it was decided that England would train in Mexico instead.
Other challenges England will face include playing at high altitude against Mexico.
Mexico City’s average elevation above sea level is about 2,240 meters, which means there is less oxygen available. This can affect the performance of some players, especially if they are not used to the conditions.
To this end, Mexico has played all four of its World Cup matches so far in high altitude conditions; three took place at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City and the other in Guadalajara, an average of 1,566 meters above sea level.
Ideally, athletes competing at high altitude should spend a week or two living at this level to allow their bodies to acclimate and produce more red blood cells.
Tuchel admitted his team would be at a disadvantage if England face Mexico this weekend.
“The height will be a big disadvantage because we cannot physically adapt to it,” Tuchel said.
“And in four days it is impossible. There may be more obstacles, but we are ready for it.
“From what I understand, we can’t adapt to the altitude. That’s a huge advantage that Mexico would have.
“It takes a lot of time. We only have three days between these matches. It is not physically possible to adapt to the altitude, which is quite high. We knew this before.
“It’s just something we have to deal with. And I think we’ve shown the attitude that we’re ready for it.”
