News (engl.)

National team to hold training camp for EURO 2024 in Thuringia

15.12.2023
Nagelsmann: "We can use our time off the pitch in the Weimar countryside"

The hotel is 30km away from Erfurt, the state capital, and will also serve as a UEFA base camp during the tournament. The training sessions will take place on the hotel’s own pitches. Germany’s coaching staff had been considering a number of training centres before deciding on Thuringia.

Völler: “We’re looking forward to seeing the fans in Thuringia”

The DFB’s sporting director Rudi Völler said, “The EUROs shouldn’t just take place at the ten venues. It’s about the whole of Germany. It was clear to us from the beginning that we should prepare for a home European Championship in Germany. We’re deliberately going East before we head to the base camp in the South. We’re looking forward to seeing the fans in Thuringia.”

National team head coach Julian Nagelsmann said, “The conditions in Weimar are perfect for our preparation ahead of the home European Championship. The resort, which had its own on-site training facilities, impressed us, as it seems to have the ideal pitch conditions and the potential to serve as a place for rest and recovery. We were also fans of its compact infrastructure. We’ll also be able to use our time off the training pitches in the best way possible in the Weimar countryside, which will also help us to build team spirit and focus on the EUROs. We’ll need a really special mood in the dressing room to get as far as we possibly can in the tournament.”

Tiefensee: “The whole of Thuringia is happy”

Thuringia’s Minister for Economic Affairs Wolfgang Tiefensee said: “The whole of Thuringia is happy that the Germany team will do their EUROs preparations here in the region, which will be a great way to kick off the competition. I’m convinced that the Germany team will take a lot of enthusiasm and momentum from their training camp in Thuringia into the tournament.” The Germany team's visit is also an important signal to the sports-loving East: “Apart from Leipzig, there are no other East German host cities. However, the fact both the Germany team are doing their preparations in Blankenhain and the England team will have their main camp there means that Thuringia will become a hotspot for enthusiasm surrounding the EUROs in Germany.” The state wants to use the international attention before and during the EUROs to promote Thuringia. “We will present ourselves as a cosmopolitan region of sport and tourism,” added Tiefensee.

Owner of the Spa & Golf Resort Matthias Grafe said, “My colleagues and my family are proud to welcome the Germany team to Thuringia. After two years of intense work, we have managed to create the perfect conditions for international football in the region. Our family business epitomises cohesion and we know exactly what can be achieved together thanks to our special team spirit. My team and I wish our national team every success for the tournament!"

Germany to face off against Scotland in EUROs opener

The Germany national team will play in Munich, Stuttgart and Frankfurt in the tournament’s group stage, whilst they will mainly be based in the south of Germany for sustainability reasons. The ten venues for UEFA EURO 2024 have been divided into three so-called regional clusters for the first time in order to keep the participating teams’ travelling as low as possible.

Germany are set to kick-off the European Championships against Scotland in Munich on 14th June (21:00 CET). They will then play further group games against Hungary in Stuttgart on 19th June (18:00 CET) and against Switzerland in Frankfurt on 23rd June (21:00 CET). Before then, the national team is also set to take on France in Lyon on 23rd March (21:00 CET) and the Netherlands in Frankfurt on 26th March (20:45 CET).

Categories: News (engl.)

Author: mmc/jd