Thomas Tuchel, England's head coach, was unable to see his team during the national anthem before England's 4-2 World Cup win over Croatia on June 17 in Dallas due to about 50 photographers blocking his view just half a meter away [1, 2, 3, 4]. Tuchel described standing "in front of a wall of 50 photographers" that ruined the special moment for him, saying, "I was waiting for this moment. It was a very, very special moment today and I was standing in front of a wall... and I could not see one single player. It ruined a little bit my experience" [3]. He also said, "I have to tell you something. I'm begging FIFA to change the position of the photographers in the national anthem because I could not see my team" [1].
The Dallas stadium’s sideline space was limited because the NFL field surface was raised 1.2 meters to fit the football pitch [1]. This constrained positioning contributed to the photographers' proximity to the coaches.
Following Tuchel's complaint, FIFA altered its policy on June 18 for subsequent games to move photographers away from the benches during national anthems [1, 2, 3, 4]. Photographers will now be grouped closer to the halfway line instead of near the teams' dugouts [1, 3, 4]. Coaches will also have the option to stand to the left or right of the photographers while the anthem plays [2, 4].
The new arrangement was put in place starting with the Group A match between the Czech Republic and South Africa on June 18 after England's Group B match the day before [1, 3]. This change aims to give coaches a clear view of their players during the anthem moments.
FIFA’s adjustment responds directly to Tuchel’s public requests and attempts to balance photographers’ needs with maintaining the coaches’ experience at key pregame moments.
