World Cup matches face threat that could delay them by hours

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Martin Macdonald | Writer

Content writer covering football, formula 1 and movies

World Cup matches face being delayed by hours as FIFA protocols do not determine when a match should be abandoned due to weather warnings.

Thunderstorm protocols in the United States state that, if a lightning strike or electric surge takes place within an eight-minute radius of an event inside a stadium, the event must be suspended immediately for 30 minutes.

In a football fixture, players would leave the field and the fans would go inside away from the extreme weather. If no other weather incidents occur, like a lightning strike, within that 30 minutes, then the match can be restarted.

However, if lightning does strike, then the clock resets back to 30 minutes.

FIFA does not have a cut-off point for stopping matches altogether, which means we could find ourselves in that constant 30-minute restart loop during the 2026 World Cup.

Due to the fact FIFA does not have a specific regulation in place for abandoning a game completely due to weather concerns, they will assess each situation on an individual basis, though matches being cancelled would create huge scheduling issues within the tournament this summer.

In May, FIFA released a detailed statement addressing the impact extreme weather conditions may have on World Cup matches.

“FIFA’s emergency preparedness team meets regularly with national meteorological and emergency management authorities in the United States, Canada and Mexico, as well as with partners across all 16 Host Cities,” the statement read.

“A comprehensive, tournament-wide preparedness exercise focusing on severe weather scenarios has further strengthened cross-agency coordination and operational readiness.

“Stadiums are required to maintain robust risk management and evacuation procedures, including lightning and severe weather protocols aligned with local legislation and international best practice.”

During last summer’s Club World Cup in the United States, extreme weather delayed several matches. Notably, Chelsea's fixture against Benfica in Charlotte lasted well over four hours being delayed by what FIFA described as "severe weather in the area."

Scientists issue brutal FIFA warning over World Cup weather

Mandatory water breaks have been introduced by FIFA and benches will be cooled for staff and players, but in an open letter by a group of world-leading scientists, they insist the current protocols are not enough to combate the extreme heat set to engulf the World Cup.

They want longer cooling breaks and for games to be delayed or even postponed if the heat becomes unbearable for the players.

In southern US states and northern Mexico, average daytime highs usually sit in the low to mid-30s Celsius and can climb to around 40C during hotter periods.

Once temperature, humidity, wind speed and sunshine intensity are taken into account, players in these World Cup host cities face the highest risk of severe heat stress.

The 20 experts from around the world who have signed the letter, want the following protocols introduced:

- Delaying or postponing matches above 28C WBGT

- Longer cooling breaks of at least six minutes

- Improved cooling facilities for players

- Regular updates to guidelines based on the latest science

WBGT is wet-bulb globe temperature. It’s a heat-stress measure that combines air temperature, humidity, wind speed and sunlight to show how hard conditions are on the human body.

It’s often used for outdoor work and sports because it gives a better picture of heat risk than temperature alone and FIFA have this in place for the World Cup.