Sammie Bell will spend nearly four weeks crossing America this summer.
Six states. Ten cities. Four flights.
The whole thing cost her £3,100, which, at a tournament that has put off plenty of supporters, counts as a result before a ball is kicked.
READ MORE: I flew to Milan for the day and was home by bedtime – the whole trip cost £115
The 30-year-old from Stevenage has followed England home and away for two decades.
Her first match was a 2006 qualifier against Andorra at Old Trafford.
Now she’s off to watch Thomas Tuchel’s side, and she fancies them.
“Compared to what I’ve seen online, I think that’s pretty good going,” she told CreatorZine.
“I’m spending nearly four weeks around America, following England around the biggest sporting event in the world.
Now I just need to survive a month of airports, suitcases and travelling around America. I can’t wait.”
The £150 flight trick
The cheapest part of the trip was getting there. Sammie flew transatlantic, both ways, for £150 all in.
“One of my biggest money saving tips is using my credit card points with British Airways to pay for my return flights to America,” she said.
“So I’m flying to Tampa and returning home from Boston and the flight only cost me £150.”
Tampa in, Boston out. The points covered the rest.
How a 20-year habit pays off
Following England since lockdown has earned Sammie a place in the England Supporters Travel Club, which comes with cheaper tickets.
Her friendly seats cost £23 for New Zealand and £28 for Costa Rica.
Her three World Cup group tickets ran to $220, $220 and $265.
Accommodation is where the group of seven really helped.
Beds split five and seven ways across the trip brought her share down to just over £1,300.
The route runs London to Florida on 5 June for the pre-tournament friendlies, then Dallas for the opener, then Houston, New Orleans, Boston and New York.
England play Croatia first, on 17 June at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
What she thinks happens next
Sammie is quietly confident, with one caveat.
“I think we will do well, although for me I think France are the team to beat,” she said.
“Another last minute goal from Ollie Watkins to take us into the final like the Euros would be brilliant.”
Why It Matters
Sammie isn’t an influencer chasing a brand deal.
She’s the kind of supporter the creator economy increasingly relies on: someone with a specific, lived obsession and the receipts to back it up.
Her breakdown reads like a how-to, and that’s the value.
Travel content built on actual costs and actual hacks travels further than aspirational montages, because readers can copy it.
A World Cup spread across a continent the size of America was always going to reward people who plan.
Loyalty schemes, points hoarding, group bookings: the supporters who treat fandom as a logistics exercise are the ones still going.
Her trip cost breakdown, for anyone tempted to follow: match tickets £575, flights £150, accommodation £1,330, other expenses £1,045. Total £3,100.
England open against Croatia on 17 June.
Sammie will be somewhere in Texas, having spent less getting there than most fans spend on the group stage alone.
