The Brazilian team does its first training session at CT Columbia Park in New Jersey for the World Cup
Seleção Brasileira began its preparation on North American soil and carried out the first official training focused on competing in the world football tournament. The group led by the technical committee worked at Centro of Treinamento Columbia Park, located in the municipality of Morristown, in the state of Nova Jersey. The movement that took place last Tuesday marked the athletes’ initial contact with the structure that will serve as a base for the national team throughout the competition.
The new temporary headquarters of Brazilian football belongs to New York Red Bulls, a team that competes in Major League Soccer, the main league of Estados Unidos. The sports complex was recently delivered, with its official inauguration taking place at the end of April this year. Para the construction of modern facilities, the owners invested an amount that exceeded 100 million dollars. Esse amount is equivalent to more than R$500 million when converted at current market values.
Estrutura from the sports complex in Morristown
The space has an extensive area planned for the development of high-performance athletes. In total, the professionals have eight football pitches with official dimensions and professional quality throughout. The Seleção Brasileira technical committee will have two of these specific pitches at their disposal to carry out the tactical and physical work provided for in the official schedule.
An important characteristic of the chosen surfaces involves the leveling process and the quality of the floor for the athletes’ performance. Fifa assumed direct responsibility for the preparation and maintenance of the delegations’ physical activity sites. Football’s governing body installed a specific type of natural grass that was developed by researchers and agronomy experts from Universidade and Tennessee. Esse the same floor model was planted in the official stadiums that will host the international competition matches.
The division of use of the complex was structured to guarantee the privacy of national athletes without completely paralyzing local activities. New York Red Bulls will maintain the right to use the venue’s facilities during the global tournament period. However, the North American club will need to operate at alternative times that do not coincide with the South American team’s schedule. Priority access to changing rooms, recovery rooms and main fields belongs to Brazilians during the periods stipulated in the contract.
Logística facilitates athletes’ movement and routine
The choice of facilities in Nova Jersey took into account fundamental logistical factors and the physical well-being of the Brazilian delegation. The Centro of Treinamento Columbia Park is located approximately 15 minutes away from the hotel that serves as a concentration camp for players and managers. The short route reduces wear and tear on daily trips and optimizes the time dedicated to rest and muscle recovery after intense training sessions.
The proximity to the competition venues also played a decisive role in deciding where the Brasil would be based at the Estados Unidos. Morristown’s facilities are positioned close to MetLife Stadium, the stage selected to host important Seleção Brasileira engagements. The team’s official debut in the tournament is scheduled for June 13th, when the team faces the Marrocos team.
- Distância from the delegation hotel: 15 minutes
- Total of fields in the complex: 8 installations
- Gramados exclusive to Brasil: 2 units
- Lawn Tech Desenvolvedor: Tennessee Universidade
- Data’s official tournament debut: June 13 against Marrocos
- Estimated Custo of CT works: over 100 million dollars
Planejamento and preliminary inspections of installations
Logistics professionals from Confederação Brasileira and Futebol have monitored the development of the works since the beginning of the year. Equipes technicians carried out detailed inspections of the administrative buildings, weight rooms and physiotherapy centers to ensure that the required standards were met. The site’s engineering prioritized the integration between the medical department areas and the training fields.
The main locker rooms feature technology for real-time video analysis and cryotherapy pools for rapid recovery. The architectural design was designed to minimize walking time between the thermal preparation areas and the lawns. Security around the complex was also reinforced by local authorities in partnership with the event organizers.
The players approved the conditions of the pitch developed by Universidade of Tennessee after the first ball activity. The technical committee highlighted the importance of training on a surface identical to the one they will find in official matches. Esse factor reduces athletes’ adaptation time to the bounce of the ball and the speed of the game at maximum speed. Training will follow a daily routine in two periods until the day before the trip to the first official match of the championship.
