Boffins say the tournament jointly staged by the US, Mexico and Canada could be the hottest ever – trumping the 2022 desert showdown in Qatar.
England fans will feel the heat at World Cup 2026 with 14 of 16 venues facing warnings of high temperatures experts say could make matches ‘unplayable’. Boffins say the tournament jointly staged by the US, Mexico and Canada could be the hottest ever – trumping the 2022 desert showdown in Qatar.
Sport and climate expert Dr Madeleine Orr said nearly all the host cities are expected to be vulnerable to extreme heat during the tournament. She believes from 12pm to 4pm many host venues would be ‘virtually unplayable’.
Football’s governing body FIFA has suggested adjusting kick off times and relying on a handful of stadiums with roofs. But that will not protect the fans. Dr Orr said: “I’m not worried about the athletes. I worry about 45,000 to 85,000 fans, the 10,000 staff and media personnel who are on site for prolonged periods.
“It’s going to be a challenge to figure out how to keep people safe. It is a conversation that’s being had but as of today there is no firm plan on that.”
She said the tournament also promised to be a climate change disaster. Recent research from the Scientists for Global Responsibility calculated the expanded tournament will generate nine million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent – making it the most ‘climate damaging’ in history.
The difficulty of playing football in high temperatures in the US are not new. In 2017 England forward Rachel Daly was treated for heat exhaustion in hospital after collapsing during a match in Houston, Texas, while playing in the National Women’s Soccer League.
Record-breaking temperatures and violent storms wreaked havoc during this summer’s Club World Cup. Lightning meant six games were delayed from 40 minutes to two hours.
Chelsea was one of the teams to struggle with the extreme heat. At the club’s semi-final against Fluminense in New Jersey the temperature hit 35C by kick-off with midfielder Enzo Fernandez saying the ‘very dangerous’ conditions made him ‘feel dizzy’.
The hottest World Cup so far was the 1994 tournament played in the US. The Republic of Ireland took on Mexico in Orlando, Florida in 41C heat.
Senior BBC weather forecaster Simon King said next year’s tournament is set to surpass that. “In June 2023 an extreme heatwave was seen in Texas, Florida and Mexico for weeks,” he has said.
“In Monterrey, Mexico, the heat index was close to 50C and in Miami it was as high as 44C. It is impossible to say a year ahead whether host cities like those will experience heatwave conditions.
“Climate change has loaded the dice to an increasing chance of this happening. And if it does it could feasibly be the hottest World Cup on record.”
Five US cities – Boston, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York/New Jersey and San Francisco – which hosted matches in 1994 are also venues next year. Data provided by Climate Central showed all except San Francisco experienced significantly more days above 32C in June this year than they did in 1994.
FIFA has declined to comment. But speaking this month at the European Football Clubs general assembly in Rome, president Gianni Infantino acknowledged extreme heat in future summers might force a rethink of football’s global calendar.
“We are discussing all the time, and I think it’s not just about one World Cup – I think it’s a general reflection,” he said. “Even to play in some European countries in July, it’s very, very hot. So maybe we have to think.
“There are ways we can optimise the calendar. But we are discussing it, and we will see when we come to some conclusion. We just have to have an open mind.”
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