FIFA Pushed to Play 2026 World Cup Final at 9 AM

Morocco World

02-07-2025

FIFA's grand plan for a blockbuster 2026 World Cup final in New York could face a reckoning as experts, unions, and managers slam the tournament's summer timing amid record-breaking heat.
The Club World Cup, currently being held across the United States, has become a dress rehearsal for disaster. With temperatures soaring to 39°C in New York and humidity pushing heat indexes above 50°C, questions are being asked about whether midday kick-offs in open-roof stadiums are madness masquerading as marketing.
Professor Mike Tipton, a specialist in human responses to extreme temperatures, told the BBC: 'I'd move it to an air-conditioned stadium with a roof, and preferably to a cooler time of the year. From a thermal-physiological perspective…I'd be looking to start games as early as possible.'
How early? Try 9 a.m. for a World Cup final.
Tipton argues it's a better alternative than turning the pitch into a slow-cooking oven for players, officials, and thousands of sweating fans.
And he's not alone. FIFPRO, the global players' union, has branded the Club World Cup a 'wake-up call'. Dr Vincent Gouttebarge, its medical director, declared that Chelsea vs ES Tunis and PSG vs Atletico Madrid 'should have been postponed' due to WBGT (Wet Bulb Globe Temperature) readings above 28°C – well past FIFPRO's red flag threshold.
The WBGT is a measure of heat stress in direct sunlight that considers temperature, humidity, wind speed, solar radiation, and cloud cover.
'We will plead,' sighed Alex Phillips, FIFPRO's general secretary. 'We will use common-sense arguments. MLS doesn't play matches at midday in Florida, for example. So why should FIFA?'
The outrage is shared by players. Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca said it was 'impossible' to run proper training in Philadelphia under a 'code red' heat warning. Thunderstorms have delayed six matches at this Club World Cup, including Chelsea's 4-1 win over Benfica, suspended for two hours in Charlotte. 'A joke,' Maresca called it.
Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund's substitutes watched the first half of their match against Mamelodi Sundowns in Cincinnati from the dressing room, with manager Niko Kovac likening conditions to 'a sauna'.
Even referees haven't escaped unscathed – a Guatemalan official collapsed mid-match in Kansas City.
Former Ireland keeper Packie Bonner, who suffered through a scorching 41°C heat in the 1994 World Cup in the US, was blunt: 'Your brain goes into a fog… It was unbelievable.' He lost 10lbs in one session.
FIFPRO now wants 20-minute half-time breaks in extreme heat, arguing the usual three-minute 'cooling breaks' aren't cutting it. 'Fifteen minutes might not be enough to decrease core temperature,' said Gouttebarge.
And yet FIFA ploughs on. A statement insisted: 'Cooling breaks' have been implemented in 31 out of 54 matches so far, a statement insisted. With this logic, bottles, towels, shade, and hydration stations are apparently enough.
But critics say that the real solution – scheduling matches to avoid peak heat – is being ignored in favor of TV slots and sponsor demands.
'At some point, shading and water won't be enough,' warned Phillips. 'This is a discussion we need to have – and soon.'
The irony is that FIFA's expansion to 48 teams and 104 matches has only made the calendar more inflexible. With only five of the 16 venues boasting a roof, and cities like Miami, Dallas, and Monterrey flagged as 'extreme risk' by researchers, the spectre of a heat-stricken World Cup 2026 looms large.
The MetLife Stadium, set to host the final, has no roof and no plan for shade. And while European fans might grumble about a morning kick-off, it might be the only way to avoid scenes of collapsing players and drenched supporters gasping for breath in what could be the hottest World Cup on record.
As one senior meteorologist warned, climate change is not just coming to football – it's already in the starting XI. And if FIFA doesn't budge, fans, players, referees, media crew, and stadium staff need to brace themselves for a final in a blistering inferno. Tags: 2026 World cupClub World Cupheatwavethunderstorms