FIFA World Cup 2026: How Thomas Tuchel's England are relying on a 60 pound pill and heat chambers in their World Cup campaign
'Using them (the tracking pill) in a training environment is lower risk than that. The players would be doing minimal contact either side of the heat acclimation sessions. It is very simple tech that has been around for quite a while. They are very accurate. They allow us to store more data than we actually need so you can sample body temperature between five and 30 seconds, and the download time is really quick. We can get a measure of core body temperature during activity,' Dr Lee Taylor, of the sports science school at Loughborough University, told The Guardian.
While England team had practised heat acclimatisation prior to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where they reached the quarter-finals, it's the first time that the players are undergoing the fitness Tests including the tracking of heat resistance data. According to the BBC, there have been warnings that temperatures at 14 to 16 stadiums being used for the FIFA World Cup 2026 could exceed 'Potentially dangerous levels' during the tournament to be played from June 11 to July 19 next year. According to the Guardian, the pills send information on a radio frequency to be read in real time by sports scientists. The pills beam the data to a 'gateway'-a wristband in case of athletes-which uploads the data to -the cloud- from where data is accessible to analyse including a player's core and surface temperature, heart-rate and other crucial metrics. England players Eberechi Eze and Cole Palmer have talked about the training in heat chambers while their body reaction was measured via the pills. 'It was tough. It was 35C, 36C inside the tents and we had to get to a certain watts [level] on the bike and maintain it. For 45 minutes.' Palmer told The Guardian.
According to the newspaper, the pulls have been used by athletes in athletics, rugby and motor racing. Taylor also talked about telling the players that 'they are not to retrieve them'.
'The players would be doing minimal contact either side of the heat acclimation sessions. It is very simple tech that has been around for quite a while. They are very accurate. They allow us to store more data than we actually need so you can sample body temperature between five and 30 seconds, and the download time is really quick. We can get a measure of core body temperature during activity. We do make it very clear to them that they are not to retrieve them', said Dr Taylor.
Last week, Tuchel had spoken about the expected conditions at the 2026 World Cup venues. 'It is important to see matches now in America, and in Miami at three in the afternoon. I will see that. How it looks, and we need to understand how to cool the players down, to drink. What our options are. Let's see because it is after the season, so it will be very similar. The actual experience is for the players, but I have done pre-season there in Orlando and I will be very surprised if we do not suffer. Suffering is one of the headlines for this World Cup,' Tuchel told BBC.
England now play Andorra at RCDE Stadium in Spain in their third Group K match in 2026 World Cup qualification. The team has won its last two matches sitting at the top of the group. Dr Taylor also talked about the training regime of the England team in the training camps. 'They (Tuchel and staff) will do technical and tactical work in a temperate environment. So they are not stressing the players too much and then they will give them passive or semi-active heat exposures. I imagine they are getting the players to a specific core temperature, they stop exercising and then when their core temperature drops they exercise a little bit more,' concluded Dr Taylor.
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