England's preparations for the 2026 World Cup got off to an inauspicious start.
After an injury-free training camp in Florida, England reported their equipment to be missing upon arriving at their Swope Soccer Village base. The Missouri police department said it was investigating the theft.
The FA has indicated that most of the training gear has been recovered and there was no impact when Thomas Tuchel's side trained for the first time in Missouri.
England backup goalkeeper Dean Henderson, when asked if his boots and gloves made it to Kansas City, said: “Yeah, thankfully. I think they got stolen but we got them back so it's all good.”
Defender Dan Burn found out about the incident through the media reports, stating he “wouldn't be able to move very much” if his boots had not turned up.
“We've not made a big deal out of it,” he said. “I've got everything I need, so I'm quite happy.
“We know that stuff has been left to the police and as a group we've not really spoken about that at all.”
Asked if the FA had spoken to the players, Burn added: “To be honest, it's not really been spoken about, so I think that shows for us that they're not too worried about it as well.”
“We're here to train. The first day out here, so it's not disrupted our preparation.”
Kansas City police department confirmed to the Associated Press that two people had been taken into custody.
Later, Kansas City was hit with a tornado warning just hours after the team arrived.
Tuchel's side arrived in the Midwest on Saturday lunchtime after a day and a half in Florida. They held a community training session at their Swope Soccer Village base in sunshine.
Best images of 2026 World Cup
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US President Donald Trump and Fifa president Gianni Infantino alongside the 2026 World Cup champions: Spain. Reuters -
Ferran Torres scores Spain's first goal past Argentina's Emiliano Martinez in the 106th minute of extra time at the World Cup final. Reuters -
Argentina's Lionel Messi after losing out to Spain in the final. Reuters -
England's players with their medals, after winning the third-place play-off against France in Miami. AFP -
French striker Kylian Mbappe challenges English defender Ezri Konsa at the Miami Stadium. AFP -
England forward Bukayo Saka, centre, celebrates after scoring his team's fifth goal. AFP -
Enzo Fernandez of Argentina celebrates scoring the equaliser against England at Atlanta Stadium. AFP -
Anthony Gordon scores the opening goal for England against Argentina. EPA -
Spain's players celebrate after beating France to reach the World Cup final. Reuters -
Spanish forward Lamine Yamal, left, is challenged by French defender Theo Hernandez in Arlington. AFP -
France forward Kylian Mbappe shows his disappointment during the semi-final defeat to Spain. AFP -
Mikel Merino celebrates scoring his team's second goal against Belgium in Inglewood. AFP -
Messi controls the ball against Switzerland's Granit Xhaka during the quarter-final match between Argentina and Switzerland in Kansas City. AFP -
Jude Bellingham celebrates after winning the quarter-final match between Norway and England in Miami. AFP -
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Gessime Yassine looks dejected after the match as Morocco's World Cup comes to an end. Reuters -
Fans in Buenos Aires celebrate Argentina's victory against Egypt. Getty Images -
Lionel Messi celebrates scoring his team's second goal against Egypt in Atlanta. AFP -
Gregor Kobel of Switzerland saves Cucho Hernandez's penalty for Colombia in the shoot-out in Vancouver. AFP -
Portugal's Bernardo Silva is left in disbelief after a missed chance against Spain, in Arlington. Reuters -
Cristiano Ronaldo is dejected after the match against Spain, as his Portugal team are eliminated from the World Cup. Reuters -
Belgium's Hans Vanaken scores their third goal past Matt Freese of the US, in Seattle. Reuters -
Belgium's Charles De Ketelaere scores their first goal against the US. Reuters -
Australian referee Alireza Faghani shows a red card to England defender Jarell Quansah against Mexico. AFP -
Erling Haaland scores his and Norway's second goal against Brazil. AFP
But a heavy storm moved in during the early evening and people in the local area, including the England camp, received an emergency alert which warned them to take shelter.
England's pre-tournament camp in Florida was also affected by weather issues, including their final warm-up friendly against Costa Rica being delayed by an hour after a thunderstorm.
England face Croatia in their first Group L match on Wednesday in Arlington.
