One of the most important considerations for any nation participating in a major tournament is where to set up base camp, a home from home where teams can train and relax throughout the competition.
So crucial is this detail that high-ranking individuals from each nation’s governing bodies will have been entrusted to thoroughly research and identify the right location long before any team has secured qualification.
Getting the decision right can go a long way to determining how each team fares.
This is no exaggeration. Indeed, it’s apt that the Euros this summer are taking place in Germany because it was there nearly two decades ago when a poor choice of base camp backfired spectacularly on England, leading to chaos, a multitude of headlines, and players being so distracted that subsequently the venue was partly blamed on the Three Lions exiting the 2006 World Cup early.
Who could possibly forget the circus that was Baden-Baden.
In truth, England’s actual base camp – the Schloss Buhlerhohe hotel, set into the Black Forest mountains – made a lot of sense. It was secluded, affording the players privacy. The training facilities were of a high standard.
The problem was that just a couple of miles down the road was situated a town Sven Goran-Eriksen talked up beforehand for having a ‘marvellous atmosphere, with some wonderful cafes and restaurants.’
With the player’s wives and families staying here the WAG phenomenon was born as paparazzi descended on Baden-Baden in their droves, snapping Victoria Beckham and co hitting the town’s Gucci and Hermes stores hard before quaffing pear bellinis.
Instead of being able to focus entirely on their job at hand, the players were inundated with daily complaints from their partners and loved ones about the behaviour of the paps. It was all a sorry mess.
Outright Winner - England
Can we expect different criteria to be prioritised this time out? Here’s Gareth Southgate when asked about this last November.
“We really want somewhere where we can be a little bit on our own. We need that nice contrast of relaxation and areas where we can work. You want to minimise travel where you can.
“Our staff at the FA are really good at picking those venues that I think the players will enjoy and will feel comfortable in. Somewhere with facilities that are good for working.”
With England short-priced in the Euro odds to go all the way and lift the trophy this summer nothing can be left to chance.
That’s why, on this occasion, a five-star golf and spa resort has been selected, situated near Leipzig.
It has football pitches and a fully equipped gym. It has top-notch security to ensure unwelcome guests are kept out. Vitally too, the resort is located less than two hours travel away from each of England’s three group games.
Spain are also well-fancied in the football betting to lift the trophy on July 14th and, like England, they have opted for private and luxurious when settling for their base camp.
The quiet town of Donaueschingen in the Black Forest has a picturesque river as its distraction. Hosts Germany meanwhile will be based in Bavaria where they’ll train at the Adidas Campus.
Some, such as Austria and the Czech Republic, have chosen cities to reside in across the competition, others have favoured remoteness. All will be dead-set on avoiding a farce, as witnessed in Baden-Baden in 2006.
Euro 2024 Base Camps List
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Albania – Kamen
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Austria – Berlin
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Belgium – Ludwigsburg
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Croatia – Neuruppin
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Czech Republic – Norderstedt
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Denmark – Freudenstadt
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England – Blankenhain
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France – Paderborn
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Georgia – Velbert
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Germany – Herzogenaurach
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Hungary – Weiler im Allgäu
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Italy – Iserlohn
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Netherlands – Wolfsburg
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Poland – Hannover
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Portugal – Harsewinkel
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Romania – Würzburg
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Scotland – Garmisch-Partenkirchen
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Serbia – Augsburg
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Slovakia – Mainz
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Slovenia – Wuppertal
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Spain – Donaueschingen
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Switzerland – Stuttgart
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Turkey – Barsinghausen
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Ukraine – Wiesbaden
*Credit for the photos in this article belongs to Alamy*
