World Cup fever is already creeping into Washington, even if the paperwork is not. Seattle-area and inland Washington officials are gearing up to host at least two national teams for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with Belgium reportedly targeting the Seattle Sounders training center in Renton and Egypt expected to work out at Gonzaga University in Spokane, according to sources. FIFA has not formally ratified those base-camp picks yet, but the possibility alone has local governments diving into planning and security drills. Belgium and Egypt are scheduled to face off at Lumen Field on June 15, which only cranks up the local stakes around where they will set up shop.
Which teams are likely to call Washington home
Belgium is widely expected to use the Seattle Sounders training complex in Renton as its World Cup base camp, according to reporting by The Seattle Times. Seattle's official World Cup page lists the tournament schedule and shows Belgium opening against Egypt at Lumen Field on June 15, which helps explain why local attention has zeroed in on Belgian base-camp plans. The Times reports that the likely assignments come from people familiar with national team planning, while also stressing that FIFA had not publicly confirmed any final pairings at the time of publication.
Where teams would train
FIFA's Team Base Camp brochure lists Renton's Seattle Sounders FC Performance Centre and Gonzaga University in Spokane among the nationwide training options national teams can choose from, rather than assigning countries to specific facilities, according to FIFA materials. The Sounders' new Providence Swedish Performance Center & Clubhouse in Renton is one of the locations that local planners say could host a World Cup squad. In its brochure, FIFA pairs each training venue with nearby hotels and related facilities to help federations decide where to stay and practice.
Spokane and Renton are already prepping
Spokane officials put Egypt firmly on their planning radar after a City Council agenda item requested the purchase of four drones to support security around practices and team movements, The Spokesman-Review reported. In Renton, emergency managers have been running large-event exercises and recruiting volunteer actors so police, fire and medical teams can rehearse mass-casualty and crowd-control scenarios ahead of World Cup activities, according to Fox 13 Seattle. Local officials in both cities say their preparations are focused on safety, traffic and logistics, not on creating public access to team training sessions.
What is official - and what still is not
FIFA's base-camp brochure functions as a menu of options, and team-to-site assignments only lock in once both FIFA and the national federations sign off. Local reporting noted that those final confirmations were still pending as of April 20. Regional planning slides from King County outline the prep timeline and list proposed Team Base Camps, including the Renton and Gonzaga sites, as part of the region's working assumptions. The documents indicate that teams are likely to arrive in late May or early June and stay through the group stage. Until FIFA and the national teams make formal announcements, communities named as potential hosts are drawing up contingency plans while remaining in a holding pattern.
How fans should plan
Fans hoping to stroll into practice are probably out of luck. Planning documents state that venue-specific training sites and proposed base camps are "likely not open to public," although supporters may still gather outside training grounds or at official watch parties and fan zones. The City of Seattle is building a downtown fan-celebration playbook and a network of community viewing sites, and Spokane is listed among the state's official fan-zone locations. As the tournament approaches, residents can expect road closures, ticketed viewing areas and detailed guidance from local authorities on where to celebrate and how to navigate the crowds.
