Japan Selects Nashville SC’s Training Center for FIFA World Cup 26™ Base Camp

The Japanese Men’s Team and Japan Football Association Delegation will be headquartered at Nashville SC’s Training Center in Antioch, Tenn.

The announcement comes following the decision by the LA28 Olympic Games to hold 2028 Olympic Soccer Tournament matches at Nashville SC’s stadium.

by Nashville Soccer Club

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Nashville Soccer Club announced today that the Japan Football Association has chosen Nashville SC’s Training Center in Antioch, Tenn. for its FIFA World Cup 26™ Team Base Camp and Training Site.

Countries participating in the in FIFA World Cup 26™ will be headquartered at Base Camps throughout North and Central America where they will train and administer team operations. Additionally, the Japanese Men’s Team will reside in Nashville when they aren’t traveling to FIFA World Cup host cities for matches.

"Nashville has proven itself as a worldwide hub for soccer, music and culture, and the decision by FIFA and the Japan Football Association to use Nashville SC’s Training Center as a home base for this year's World Cup underscores our city’s importance in the global soccer landscape," said Nashville SC Chief Business Officer Lindsey Paola. "We are both honored and thrilled to be a part of the biggest World Cup in the tournament's 95-year history."

Nashville SC’s Training Center officially opened its doors in June 2023. The 12-acre, 60,000 square foot training facility is a state-of-the-art soccer complex home to three soccer fields, a full-service-dining hall, a theater-style video and film room, multiple cardio and weight-training areas, cryogenic chambers to aid in athlete recovery and on-site medical facilities.

The FIFA World Cup 26™ kicks off Thursday, June 11 with Group Stage play and will conclude Sunday, July 19 with the final taking place at New York New Jersey Stadium.

Japan’s FIFA World Cup 26™ Group Stage (Group F) Schedule:

  • June 14 at 3 p.m. CT: Japan vs. Netherlands (Dallas Stadium)
  • June 20 at 11 p.m. CT: Japan vs. Tunisia (Monterrey Stadium)
  • June 25 at 6 p.m. CT: Japan vs. TBD (Dallas Stadium

MEDIA RESOURCES:

  • Nashville SC press conference footage can be found here.
  • Nashville SC match photos can be found here.
  • Nashville SC Media Center with news, b-roll from training, match notes, other video and photo resources.
  • Media looking to follow NSC on social media can find the club on TikTok, X, and Instagram with the handle @NashvilleSC. For Facebook and YouTube please use “Nashville Soccer Club”
  • The official club hashtag when referring to Nashville SC on social media is #EveryoneN

Statement from Deana Ivey, President and CEO, Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp:

“We are honored to welcome the Japanese Men’s National Team and the Japan Football Association delegation to Nashville this summer as their FIFA World Cup 26 Team Base Camp and Training Site. Japan is an international market we have worked over the years and would like to see grow, and we know there is a deep appreciation there for our music, culture and culinary scene. This opportunity is the result of strong collaboration among our team, Nashville SC and the Mayor’s Office, and we’re especially grateful to Chief of Staff Masami Tyson for her leadership in helping bring it across the finish line. Hosting the Japanese team will shine a spotlight on Music City in an important international market and further build on Nashville’s growing momentum as a global destination."

About Nashville SC

Nashville SC joined Major League Soccer on Feb. 29, 2020 in front of the largest attendance ever recorded for a soccer match in the State of Tennessee and won its first trophy and the first major professional sports championship in Tennessee history with its victory in the 2025 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. In its inaugural MLS season, Nashville SC defied expectations by becoming the second MLS expansion side to win and advance to the Conference Semifinals in the 2020 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs. Nashville SC returned to the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs in its sophomore campaign after becoming just the seventh team in MLS history to go unbeaten at home in a season. The Boys in Gold again qualified for the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs in 2022, 2023, and 2025, becoming just the third team in league history to reach the postseason during the team's first four years in existence and the ninth to do so in five of its first six seasons. Nashville SC inaugurated GEODIS Park, the largest soccer-specific stadium in the United States and Canada, in front of a sellout crowd of 30,109 on May 1, 2022. For more information, visit NashvilleSC.com and follow the club at @NashvilleSC on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, X and Spotify.

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