Leisure Note: Club World Cup matches are frequently interrupted. Will the World Cup be better next year?

Xinhua News Agency reporters Xiao Shiyao and Wang Haoming

On the 29th, Chelsea and Benfica fought fiercely until the 83rd minute of the 2025 Club World Cup. The referee suddenly whistled and interrupted the game. Before the fans could react, the players had already walked to the locker room.

About a minute or two, the big screen of the stadium was played: "The game was suspended due to bad weather, please find the cover yourself." Under the supervision of the broadcast, all fans quickly evacuated.

At this time, the empty Charlotte Bank of America Stadium was shining brightly. Looking from the distance from the high ground of the stadium, the reporter could see dark clouds approaching.

The reporter sat next to the media studio with Chelsea's media team, and they began to check the fans' reactions on the Internet. A fan's voice came from the video: "The sun is so big in the stadium, but the game is suspended." The funny tone caused laughter from reporters.

After waiting for nearly two hours, the dark clouds finally dissipated and the game resumed. During this period, there was no rain on the stadium.

This is the sixth time in less than two weeks that the Club World Cup has been interrupted or postponed due to weather reasons.

, including this quarterfinals, most of the delays or interruptions are due to "possible thunderstorms." According to the event regulations set by FIFA, if lightning occurs within 10 miles (about 16.09 kilometers) around the stadium, the game will automatically be suspended.

Fans may not understand, and the thunderstorm has not arrived yet. Isn’t it enough to finish the game in the last few minutes? But for the event organizer FIFA, it is the most important thing to prevent lightning risks as much as possible. Football stadiums are often located in open areas, with no large buildings and trees surrounding them, and lightning is prone to hit the ground directly; coupled with the large number of metal facilities in the stadium, they may become lightning conductors, which also increases the risk of lightning strikes. Previously, there were many lightning strikes in football games, leaving behind a painful lesson.

On June 19, Palmeiras' match with Cairo Nationals in New York was suspended due to a thunderstorm. On the same day, a 15-year-old boy was hit by a lightning strike under a tree in Manhattan Central Park, 20 kilometers away from the stadium, which is enough to illustrate the necessity of lightning protection for football games.

The main reason for the repeated interruptions or postponement of this Club World Cup is the extreme weather frequently occurring in the United States in summer. Ben Short, director of operations at the National Weather Service, said in an interview with the media that thunderstorms are very common in the region east of the Rockies in the United States every summer, from Cincinnati to New York. Florida also often causes thunderstorms due to sea breezes. "What you see now is not an unusual thing."

Most of the 2026 World Cup will also be held in the United States, which naturally aroused the concerns of the majority of fans - will the World Cup be good next year? "We may experience the same situation next year," said Short. He said the National Weather Service has worked with FIFA to develop emergency weather plans for all World Cup stadiums.

However, judging from the information of the reporters in all parties, the situation related to the World Cup next year is likely to improve.

First, some cities with frequent thunderstorms will not hold World Cup competitions. The host city of the six games that are currently interrupted or postponed in this Club World Cup, only New York will continue to host the World Cup next year.

Secondly, a FIFA official told reporters that a covered stadium can be closed before encountering thunderstorms and the game can continue. Only one stadium in Atlanta is covered in this Club World Cup, and next year, there are five stadiums with ceilings, so the possibility of games being affected by thunderstorms will be reduced. But the New York Metropolitan Life Stadium, which is about to hold the World Cup final, has no ceiling and is still at risk.

In short, next year, there will still be thunderstorms, but the chances of game interruptions will be relatively smaller. As for whether the World Cup final can be held smoothly, it depends on God's will.