Category News

After a fourth game was postponed due to thunderstorms, the Fifa Club World Cup is still being affected by weather concerns. A heatwave is expected next week.

Due to the storms and heavy rain in Orlando, the second half of Benfica’s Group C match against Auckland City started more than two hours late.

The delay had caused more than an hour before Mamelodi Sundowns against Ulsan HD in the same city.

And there were lengthy intermissions between Salzburg and Pachuca in Cincinnati and Palmeiras v Al-Ahly in New Jersey (40 minutes).

According to Fossil Free Football, ten games are scheduled for the following week that could result in significant or extreme heat risks.

The United States, Canada, and Mexico are co-hosting the World Cup, which comes just one year after it ends.

The fixtures at the no-shade stadium in Charlotte, where a heat index of 38C (Real Madrid vs. Pachuca) and 41C (Benfica vs. Bayern), are reportedly of particular concern.

This underscores the dangers that fans and players will encounter at this and in 2026. There is little that Fifa can do to calm safety worries.

In Nashville’s 41C on a field with little cover is scheduled for the game between Auckland City and Boca Juniors, which is part-time football in New Zealand.

In the upcoming heatwave, matches will also be played in Philadelphia, New York, Cincinnati, and Washington, DC.

Marcos Llorente added that “it’s incredible” and that my toes were sore and my nails were hurting following Atletico’s 4-0 defeat by Paris St-Germain in Pasadena in 32C.

Fans complained about long lines and water restrictions when arriving at the stadium and that they had to leave that game due to the heat.

According to a Fifa statement, “Fifa’s top priority is the health of everyone who plays football,” and its medical team has been in frequent contact with the participating clubs to discuss heat management and acclimatization.

Fans are permitted to bring empty, clear bottles of up to one litre into stadiums as well as cooling breaks in the 30th and 75th minute, respectively.

Los Angeles FC defeated Chelsea 3-1 in their opening game against Flamengo on Friday, making them one of two English teams competing alongside Manchester City.

From a scheduling perspective, there will be concerns about the delays in games in addition to the danger the heat poses to players, staff, and supporters.

For thunder and lightning storms and heavy rain, there were waits of 40 minutes to two and a half hours for four of the first 21 games.

The potential for overlapping matches at the 2026 World Cup won’t disappoint broadcasters.

An hour before Chelsea’s match against Flamengo was scheduled to end, Benfica vs. Auckland City had to come to an end, but the Blues’ defeat came about after the final whistle was blown.

Bruno Lage, a coach for Benfica, said, “This is the longest game of my career.” Our fans, who have been watching the team for five hours, deserve special appreciation.

Betfred Super League

St. Helens (8) 18

Trys: Feldt 3; Dagnall; Sailor;

Leeds Rhinos (0) 4

A shoddy Leeds Rhinos performance gave St. Helens a well-deserved Super League victory.

Before Deon Cross extended Saints’ lead with a daring over for the game’s first try on the stroke of half-time, Kyle Feldt kicked two penalty goals for the home side in the opening 25 minutes.

Riley Lumb’s try, which was his 10th of the season, was a positive one after the break, and Leeds made improvements.

However, the Rhinos’ momentum was hampered by a string of handling errors in the sweltering heat, and tries from Owen Dagnall and Tristan Sailor provided the winning result for the Saints side that was to suffer from injury.

After falling to their first six games, Leeds are still in third place with 20 points, while St. Helens is just two points behind.

When the sides met last month, Rhinos won 17-4, but in Lancashire they were below par from the beginning.

Harry Newman and James Bentley both committed high tackles, which reflected Brad Arthur’s side’s error-filled first period, which gave Feldt two penalty goals.

The veteran winger’s brilliant tackle by player-of-the-match Harry Robertson prevented Leeds’ only real chance in the first half, which was a Ryan Hall intercept.

And Tristan Sailor released Cross, whose clever show-and-go tricked Hall and gave a clear path to the line when Leeds coughed up possession in their own 20 shortly after.

Rhinos, who had a stronger second half, found much-needed rest at half-time.

After a magnificent Lachie Miller break, the Australian full-back dodged several tackles before moving the ball wide and dotted down, where Lumb did.

With a darting effort, Jarrod O’Connor beat Leeds, and as the game progressed, St. Helens struck back and forth as the momentum grew.

Deft hands from Jonny Lomax and Sailor launched Dagnall into space from the back of a scrum. In two starts, Feldt converted and scored his second try, taking the lead 10-point, off his left foot.

Leeds never really looked like bridging that gap, finishing only 69% of their sets and making 16 errors.

Paasi, Delaney, Stephens, and Burns make the changes.

Miller, Hall, Newman, Handley, Lumb, Croft, Palasia, O’Connor, Oledski, McDonnell, Gannon, and Watkins are Leeds Rhinos.

Interchanges: Smith, Holroyd, Bentley, and Lisone

Betfred Super League

Wakefield Trinity (10) 16

Goals: Jowitt 2

Wigan Warriors (0) 10

At Belle Vue, the Wigan Warriors were deposed by an impressive Wakefield Trinity, which put them one step ahead of Super League leaders Hull KR.

Caius Faatili and Josh Griffin scored tries to give Trinity a 10-point lead at half-time after a brief period of pressure.

The sluggish Warriors struggled to find their rhythm, so Trinity stayed ahead with another score from Tom Johnstone despite Adam Keighran’s four-point lead at the start of the second half.

Through Jai Field, Wigan eventually rallied for a late try, but it was insufficient to prevent a third defeat of the campaign.

The outcome put an end to Wigan’s nine-match winning run and put Daryl Powell’s side in the lead.

The champions immediately put pressure on Trinity, who had come into the game after several defeats, and they spent the majority of the first 15 minutes writing their way back near their goal line.

With Mason Lino’s skillful kicking helping to elicit a number of defensive errors from the Warriors, Johnstone was denied at the last by Liam Farrell, who had already contributed to that score, which gave the Wakefield ranks more confidence.

Prior to the interval, Lino’s kick split the Wigan line, and Griffin eagerly seized the chance, with Max Jowitt adding the extras to make it 10-0.

Before Bevan French set up Keighran to gallop through to the right and dive across, Wigan immediately responded with a successful conversion and won two early penalties before Wigan won the victory.

However, Nsemba made a mistake shortly after, and Jake Trueman’s looping pass to winger Johnstone gave Trinity another set of tackles, giving him the 10-point lead.

After Wigan were fined for obstruction, Jowitt missed a routine conversion earlier in the match and was hit again with a penalty kick.

The Warriors, who had won at Huddersfield last weekend and overturned a half-time deficit to win, were unable to influence the outcome because of how they found themselves in a recovery position.

Scott, Hood, Vagana, and Croft are the exchanges.

Field, Eckersley, Keighran, Wardle, Wardle, Marshall, Marshall, French, Smith, Byrne, O’Neill, Thompson, Nsemba, Farrell, and Ellis are the Wigan Warriors.

Havard, Mago, Leeming, and Dupree are the exchanges.