England top air miles among semi-finalists – does it matter?
England squad
- Full squad
-
1 Jordan PICKFORD
Goalkeeper -
2 Ezri KONSA
Defender -
3 Nico OREILLY
Defender -
4 Declan RICE
Midfielder -
5 John STONES
Defender -
6 Marc GUEHI
Defender -
7 Bukayo SAKA
Forward -
8 Elliot ANDERSON
Midfielder -
9 Harry KANE
Forward -
10 Jude BELLINGHAM
Midfielder -
11 Marcus RASHFORD
Forward -
12 Trevoh CHALOBAH
Defender -
13 Dean Henderson
Goalkeeper -
14 Jordan HENDERSON
Midfielder -
15 Dan BURN
Defender -
16 Kobbie MAINOO
Midfielder -
17 Morgan ROGERS
Midfielder -
18 Anthony GORDON
Forward -
19 Ollie WATKINS
Forward -
20 Noni MADUEKE
Forward -
21 Eberechi EZE
Midfielder -
22 Ivan TONEY
Forward -
23 James TRAFFORD
Goalkeeper -
24 Reece JAMES
Defender -
25 Djed SPENCE
Defender -
26 Jarell QUANSAH
Defender
Argentina squad
- Full squad
-
1 Juan MUSSO
Goalkeeper -
2 Marcos SENESI
Defender -
3 Nicolas TAGLIAFICO
Defender -
4 Gonzalo MONTIEL
Defender -
5 Leandro PAREDES
Midfielder -
6 Lisandro MARTINEZ
Defender -
7 Rodrigo DE PAUL
Midfielder -
8 Valentin BARCO
Midfielder -
9 Julian ALVAREZ
Forward -
10 Lionel MESSI
Forward -
11 Giovani Lo Celso
Midfielder -
12 Geronimo RULLI
Goalkeeper -
13 Cristian ROMERO
Defender -
14 Exequiel PALACIOS
Midfielder -
15 Nico GONZALEZ
Midfielder -
16 Thiago ALMADA
Forward -
17 Giuliano SIMEONE
Forward -
18 Nico PAZ
Forward -
19 Nicolas OTAMENDI
Defender -
20 Alexis MAC ALLISTER
Midfielder -
21 Jose Manuel LOPEZ
Forward -
22 Lautaro MARTINEZ
Forward -
23 Emiliano MARTINEZ
Goalkeeper -
24 Enzo FERNANDEZ
Midfielder -
25 Facundo MEDINA
Defender -
26 Nahuel MOLINA
Defender
England have travelled the furthest of the World Cup 2026 semi-finalists, covering more than 14,000 miles on their way to the last four, far more than France or Argentina. The article argues that the tournament’s three-country format and 16 host cities have created unusually large travel demands, raising questions about whether long distances, repeated flights and constant movement could affect teams’ performance, recovery and overall tournament experience.
England’s back-and-forth trips from their base in Kansas City have taken them to Atlanta, Boston, Mexico City and Miami, while Argentina, also based in Kansas City, have travelled just over 8,000 miles and Spain more than 12,000. France have had one of the lightest travel schedules, staying mostly on the east coast and covering fewer than 2,000 miles before a roughly 3,000-mile round trip to Dallas for their semi-final against Spain. The piece notes that heavy travel is not entirely new at World Cups, but the expanded 48-team tournament across North America has intensified it, and Norway manager Stale Solbakken said flights, air conditioning and the wider strain of constant movement had begun to take a physical toll.
- England have travelled far more than the other semi-finalists
- World Cup 2026 has created unusually heavy travel demands
- The effect on performance is unclear but a concern