It’s also not just about what the squad and staff need. Their families matter too.
This is the biggest – and potentially longest – experience and tournament many will partake in. And with it being on the other side of the world, many will want their loved ones close by.
But Dicker, who has his wife and children with him, insists there’s plenty for families to do.
“You’re away for so long, I’m sure most of them are going to come with their families,” he explained. “But there’s loads of stuff to do here with the kids.
“It’s a fast-growing city, which isn’t too busy, while you’re close to the mountains and sea too.
“Even if they do want to go to Disneyland it’s an hour-and-a-half flight to come back and down, it’s not far at all.”
While Clarke might not want to hear of Andy Robertson running around in Mickey Mouse ears, downtime is a priority for the head coach and his staff, who will be “encouraging their freedom”.
“We’re away for a long time, so it was important to get that relaxed element too,” the assistant coach added.
“It was important that we were not isolated in a training facility that’s not in a city, and in Charlotte, there’s a lot for the players to do.
“We’ll be encouraging them and I’m sure we’ll try and get them to follow the routine they have back at home, if that’s being able to see family time at certain points or if that’s going out to do some shopping in an afternoon.
“Each player’s got their own way of working and the manager’s very open to allow that to be the feel around the group.”
