This weekend, Truro Metropolis and a hardy group of their followers shall be making a historic journey for his or her Nationwide League fixture in opposition to Gateshead.
With the 2 golf equipment located in reverse corners of the nation, the sport represents the longest away journey within the historical past of English skilled soccer, with the travelling Truro followers going through a gruelling 902-mile spherical journey from their properties in southern Cornwall all the best way as much as Gateshead within the northeast, on the opposite aspect of the River Tyne from Newcastle.
The Tinners earned promotion from the regional Nationwide League South final season and as such are competing within the Nationwide League this 12 months — the fifth tier of the soccer pyramid that takes in golf equipment from proper throughout England.
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Confronted with league fixtures scattered throughout the nation, Truro’s closest Nationwide League opponents this season are Yeovil City who’re based mostly a mere 280-mile spherical journey away within the county of Somerset.
Certainly, these intrepid travelling Truro supporters have already damaged the space file as soon as this season with a 878-mile spherical journey to Carlisle United, which noticed nearly 80 followers make the 14-hour journey to Brunton Park and again solely to look at their aspect lose 3-0.
The earlier Soccer League file was set with the journeys between Newcastle United and Plymouth Argyle within the 2009-10 Championship season, which was a 832-mile spherical journey.
As exhausting as their expeditions shall be this season, Truro’s tour itinerary pales compared to a few of the longest-distance league fixtures in numerous international locations world wide. Right here we take a look at a few of the most gargantuan away journeys going down in skilled league soccer for the time being, with all distances measured in miles, because the crow flies between the 2 dwelling stadiums of the golf equipment concerned.
Given the dimensions of the nation, you would be forgiven for pondering that Chinese language soccer would cough up some mammoth away journeys. Nevertheless, the vast majority of the golf equipment concerned within the Tremendous League (and the vast majority of China’s inhabitants of 1.4 billion basically) are based mostly east of the Heihe-Tengchong line, which splits the nation in half.
As such, the longest spherical journey this season is the comparatively transient hop between Yunnan Yukun and Changchun Yatai (1,819 miles).
With the nation of Chile stretching for hundreds of miles down the western coast of South America, it stands to cause that their prime home league has a few long-haul journeys between golf equipment — the longest of all being the spherical journey between Huachipato and Deportes Iquique (2,316 miles).
One other of the biggest international locations on the planet, India’s soccer away days are considerably moderated by a few the farther-flung golf equipment relocating to extra centralised stadiums through the league season.
Nevertheless, the tie between NorthEast United FC (no prizes for guessing the place they’re based mostly) and Bengaluru FC remains to be a reasonably daunting 2,582-mile spherical journey for any fan intending on making the journey.
Kazakh Premier League (2,606 miles)
Kazakhstan’s prime flight may not be essentially the most distinguished in world soccer however by advantage of being staged in one of many world’s 10 largest international locations by land mass, the away day between FC Yelimay and FC Atyrau nonetheless manages to rub shoulders with a few of the longest journeys in skilled soccer (2,606 miles).
This season, Spanish soccer has witnessed its longest-ever league away journey with the sport between Las Palmas and FC Andorra in LaLiga 2, which broke the present nationwide file by far — should you’ll excuse the pun.
Las Palmas are based mostly on the island of Gran Canaria within the Canary Islands, situated roughly 100 miles off the coast of North Africa. FC Andorra however are located within the miniscule nation of the identical identify, nestled excessive among the many Pyrenees mountains on the border between Spain and France.
That implies that any travelling fan faces an intimidating 2,748-mile spherical journey between the grounds, which presumably may contain a stint aboard a ferry, aeroplane or maybe even a cable automobile.
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Most Russian Premier League golf equipment are located (not less than roughly) within the west of the sprawling nation. As such, the longest mainland spherical journey for travelling followers is between Zenit St Petersburg and Dynamo Makhachkala (2,770 miles).
There may be one journey that eclipses it, due to FC Baltika Kaliningrad’s promotion to the Russian Premier League for the 2025-26 season. Baltika are based mostly in Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian enclave located between Poland and Lithuania, and as such their journey to face Dynamo Makhachkala within the south of mainland Russia is a whopping 2,910 miles.
An honourable point out can be undoubtedly due for Luch-Energiya Vladivostok, who performed within the Russian Premier League between 2006 and 2008. They have been based mostly in Vladivostok which is within the far east of Russia, near the border with China and North Korea on the Sea of Japan. Vladivostok is roughly 3,985 miles east of Moscow, which means each different single membership within the Russian Premier League on the time have been confronted with monumental journeys to the Pacific coast.
The file for the longest-distance fixture in Russian skilled soccer was the second-tier recreation between Baltika and SKA-Khabarovsk in 2023.
With Kaliningrad being an enclave to the west of mainland Russia and Khabarovsk additionally being located within the far east of Russia (about 500 miles north of Vladivostok), the 2 groups have been introduced with a gargantuan 4,362-mile spherical journey.
Whereas Brazil’s second-tier Serie B has a fixture between Amazonas (who’re based mostly within the Amazon rainforest metropolis of Manaus) and Criciúma which entails a 3,810 mile spherical journey, that’s eclipsed by the Serie A recreation between Fortaleza on the north Brazilian coast and Internacional within the southerly state of Rio Grande do Sul, which sees followers having to journey 3,990 miles throughout the nation for the event.
Spanning North America, one of many largest land lots on the planet, it ought to maybe come as little shock that there are a selection of really huge away journeys in MLS this season. Whereas the league is split into Jap and Western Conferences, every workforce performs a handful of of regular-season matches with opponents on the opposite aspect of the continent.
For instance, New England Revolution followers face lengthy treks from the north-east to California so as to face LAFC (5,176-mile spherical journey), LA Galaxy (5,186 miles) and the San Jose Earthquakes (5,354 miles).
Nevertheless, the largest tour of all is introduced by the fixture between Vancouver Whitecaps and Inter Miami CF, which entails a 5,564-mile spherical journey that even crosses a world border en route. And, for these paying consideration, Lionel Messi & Co. shall be enjoying in a brand new dwelling subsequent season at Miami Freedom Park — 28 miles south of their present digs at Chase Stadium — which means a brand new file might be set in 2026 if Thomas Müller’s workforce are pitted in opposition to Messi’s aspect.
Canadian Premier League (5,574 miles)
Because the second largest nation on Earth by way of land mass, Canada can boast a really epic away day in its prime tier of home soccer with the tie between Pacific FC on the west coast and Halifax Wanderers on the east entailing an enormous 5,574-mile spherical journey that may soak up the whole southern border and possibly a ferry journey or two throughout the Salish Sea.
In widespread footballing parlance, “derby” video games are often held between two golf equipment in shut proximity however the A-League fixture between Perth Glory and Wellington Phoenix very a lot bucks that pattern.
The town of Perth is situated on the west coast of mainland Australia and Wellington is on the northern island of New Zealand, which suggests the spherical journey between the 2 stadiums stands at a colossal 6,566 miles over land and sea.
The sport is due to this fact on file because the longest-distance skilled league recreation within the historical past of affiliation soccer. It is little surprise they name it the “Distance Derby.”
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Whereas not a league fixture, it is definitely price giving an honourable point out to the Coupe de France, which regularly consists of groups from distant French abroad territories and due to this fact produces a few of the most ridiculous away journeys possible.
The competitors is famously open to any and all novice {and professional} golf equipment based mostly in France or its 13 abroad territories outdoors Europe, resembling Guadeloupe within the southern Caribbean or Réunion within the Indian Ocean. Which means sometimes an novice workforce from a rural city in the course of France can find yourself being drawn in opposition to unique opposition from a distant Pacific island situated hundreds of miles away.
Certainly, the longest journey ever recorded got here in 2014 when Trelissac FC have been pitted in opposition to Magenta Noumea within the first spherical. Trelissac performed within the Championnat Nationwide 2, the fourth tier of French soccer, on the time and are based mostly in a small rural village within the Dordogne area of mainland France. Amazingly, Magenta are based mostly on the island of New Caledonia within the southwest Pacific, roughly 750 miles from the japanese coast of Australia.
As such, Trelissac needed to make the really unbelievable 21,303-mile spherical journey for the tie which took nearly 60 hours in whole and included a layover in Japan. They misplaced 3-0.