Korea secures World Cup base camp near stadium for group stage fixtures

Chivas Verde Valle in Guadalajara, Mexico, will serve as the base camp for the Korean national team during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, placing the squad near Akron Stadium, where they will play their first two group stage fixtures.

The Korean national team celebrates after a 2-0 win over Bolivia at Daejeon World Cup Stadium in Daejeon on Nov. 14, 2025. [YONHAP]

Chivas Verde Valle in Guadalajara, Mexico, will serve as the base camp for the Korean national team during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, placing the squad near Akron Stadium, where they will play their first two group stage fixtures.

“Chivas Verde Valle has been selected as the base camp,” the Korea Football Association (KFA) said on Thursday. “FIFA approved the base camp that we listed as our top choice.”

The facility serves as the training ground for the Mexican football club Deportivo Guadalajara. Among roughly 70 candidate sites, the KFA listed two Guadalajara facilities as its first and second choices, with Chivas Verde Valle being its No. 1 pick.

Under the expanded 48-team World Cup format, each country submits to FIFA a list of its five preferred base camp sites. FIFA then makes the final selections by considering factors such as the seeding pot, number of matches played in a given city and travel distance between base camps and match venues.

Colombia stood as a potential rival for the Chivas Verde Valle base camp, as it will also play two group stage matches in Mexico.

But with Korea having secured Chivas Verde Valle, the Taeguk Warriors can now train 6 kilometers (3.8 miles) from Akron Stadium.

The stadium sits at an altitude of 1,571 meters (5,150 feet). Thinner air can cause players to tire more quickly, even through light running.

Korea will face a yet-to-be-determined European playoff winner in their first group stage game at this year's World Cup and play co-host Mexico before taking on South Africa.

As this year's World Cup features 48 countries, the knockout stage starts with 32 teams, comprising winners and runners-up from 12 groups, as well as the top eight teams that placed third.

The national squad, led by manager Hong Myung-bo, will have tune-up games against Austria and one yet-to-be-decided country during the March international break.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY PARK LIN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]