Expect Club World Cup delays to repeat next summer, says weather chief
With the Club World Cup entering its second week, fans and spectators from around the world are learning just how chaotic summer weather can be in the United States.
Weather has become a major focal point of the tournament, with four matches in four days experiencing weather-related delays that have at times suspended play for as long as two hours. Weather concerns will likely continue into next week, as a heat wave is expected to send temperatures soaring across the country, starting this weekend.
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Severe weather, such as extreme heat in Los Angeles or sudden thunderstorms in Orlando, is par for the course for Americans during the summer months of June and July and will likely mirror what we'll see at the men's World Cup in 2026.
'What you're seeing right now is very typical. This is not unusual at all,' Ben Schott, operations chief with the National Weather Service, told The Athletic on Friday. 'Next year, we may be going through the same thing.'
Schott, who was tapped by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the parent agency of the NWS, to be the agency's World Cup planning team representative, has been keeping tabs on the Club World Cup and all the weather-related mishaps that have unraveled over the past week. Scott has been working closely with FIFA and organizers over the past eight months to prepare for next year, and is also overseeing his agency's planning for the 2028 Olympics in L.A..
The weather-related issues at the Club World Cup began when thunderstorms forced Tuesday's fixture between Ulsan and Mamelodi Sundowns in Orlando, Florida, to be delayed by more than an hour. The following day in Cincinnati, Ohio, roughly 900 miles away, Red Bull Salzburg's match against Pachuca was also delayed for 97 minutes because of severe thunderstorms.
Then, Thursday's match at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, between Palmeiras and Al Ahly was also suspended briefly as flash storms rolled through the region amid scorching heat that left fans scrambling for shade and water. The scattered storms may have been brief, but they posed real risks for those in the area. In nearby Central Park in Manhattan, less than 14 miles away, a 15-year-old was standing under a tree when he was struck by lightning. He miraculously survived.
The longest weather delay came on Friday, when Benfica's 6-0 win over Auckland City was marred by a two-hour weather delay due to thunderstorms in Orlando, again.
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'This time of year, especially east of the Rockies, we see thunderstorm development quite frequently. Especially in the northern half of the U.S., (from) Cincinnati all the way east to New York,' Schott said. 'It's not unusual this time of year to have cold fronts coming through, producing thunderstorms that are going to come through with each cold front. That can come through every three to five, seven days.'
Geography also plays a massive role in certain weather patterns. In Florida, for example, a sea breeze can form on the western and eastern coasts of the state. 'Thunderstorms love to form on that sea breeze, and then, typically, that sea breeze moves further inland,' Schott said. 'So, it's possible that afternoon matches (and) early evening matches could be impacted by that phenomenon.'
In a country as massive as the United States, weather challenges vary from region to region. So, the National Weather Service has been working closely with FIFA's safety and security chief to develop plans for all 11 U.S. cities preparing to host World Cup games next year.
'They've already developed a hazards weather plan that they presented to the FIFA officials, and it broke it down city by city, the threats that are possible in each of the cities that the World Cup will be participating in,' Schott said.
It should be noted that of the four delays so far, only the one at MetLife took place in a city that will stage World Cup games, as Orlando and Cincinnati both missed out on hosting rights.
Of the arenas affected so far, Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando has no more scheduled Club World Cup games, although nearby Camping World Stadium is slated for four more, including the big Group G clash between Juventus and Manchester City. Cincinnati's TQL Stadium has just one more scheduled match, while MetLife has five more, including both semifinals and the final.
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Next summer, the National Weather Service will also have meteorologists in each city who will work closely with local leaders, Schott said. Their main goal as a federal agency being to protect 'life and property.' He explained that FIFA, meanwhile, will likely have its own meteorologist who will prioritize forecasting related to players and the tournament.
'We do have meteorologists that are working in each of those cities with officials who are planning the events, both Club (World) Cup and World Cup,' Schott said. 'So, there are folks, and have been behind the scenes for the last few months, working with those officials to make sure that anybody attending a Club Cup event will be safe (and) will be protected from weather.'
Schott's biggest concern looking ahead to next year is making sure that those involved are doing their best to inform the public of any risks posed by extreme weather in the U.S., and ensuring forecasts are delivered efficiently with as much notice as possible. That's especially important for international fans who may be unfamiliar with the nuances of an American summer. To reach them, the agency has plans to translate their forecasts into all the FIFA-approved languages.
'We want to make sure that we work with the FIFA folks so they can make sure they pass those threats along. A lot of folks are coming in, and they may not be as legible of North American weather and the time of year,' Schott said. 'Severe weather, heavy rain, significant heat, are all dangerous threats that we have to put up with here and in North America. It's just (about) working with them to make sure that they understand that these things are going to be possible next year.'
He added that some fans 'just aren't familiar with United States weather and how fast they can go from a sunny day to a significant weather event in just minutes. That's something that we can see, and it's something that we will make sure that we're reporting out.'
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