World Cup sees first weather delay in decades during France-Iraq in Philadelphia

Fans at Philadelphia Stadium were “evacuated out of the stands” and “told to seek shelter as severe thunderstorms” moved through the region during the World Cup game between France and Iraq on Monday evening. The delay began at halftime, around 5:50pm ET, with France up on Iraq 1-0. Some fans “trickled back to their seats” during the delay, even as they were “being told to seek shelter.” Loud cheers “erupted twice from the steamy main concourse level” after it was announced that fans were able to return to their seats. The game resumed at 8pm after the “lengthy weather delay.” There was no hydration break during the second half (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 6/22).

It was the “first rain delay of the tournament and the first time in at least several decades that a World Cup match was delayed midgame because of inclement weather.” France “played through the rain and muck” to beat Iraq 3-0. The stoppage was “initially expected to extend the halftime break by 15 minutes,” but the teams did not return to the field to warm up for about 1 hour, 40 minutes. A rule used by FIFA “pauses games for 30 minutes if lightning is detected within 8 miles,” with each strike resetting the clock (AP, 6/22).

The storms also “created uncertainty for the match between Norway and Senegal,” which “kicked off on time” at 8pm at N.Y. N.J. Stadium and ended in a 3-2 Norway victory. Fans “in ponchos and rain gear arrived” at the stadium “prepared for the wet conditions” (N.Y. TIMES, 6/22).