Torrential rain and lightning in Orlando has seen England’s final pre-World Cup friendly against Costa Rica delayed. The match was due to get underway at 4pm eastern time (9pm BST) but adverse weather conditions has prevented that from happening with standing water visible on the pitch at Inter&Co Stadium after heavy rainfall and lightning strike warnings being issued.
An update from England read: “Today’s game against Costa Rica has been delayed due to weather conditions in Orlando. We’ll provide further updates as soon as we have them.” Inside the stadium, a message stating “inclement weather please seek shelter” was displayed on the big LED board.
England supporters heading to the stadium were forced to seek shelter with some heading into a local library, as per PA, which seemingly places the game in doubt. Despite rain stopping slightly and the pitch clearing, the weather had enough of an impact to cause a delay.
New images of the pitch and the sky appear to show that it has drained extremely well with it also seeming to now be much brighter in Orlando, but that appears to be too little too late. Due to how often this occurs, it is likely the surface is well-prepared to handle such vast amounts of rainfall.
If the match does get underway, and the weather worsens, there are strict rules surrounding lightning which would see players taken off the pitch if there is a strike nearby. The game would not resume for 30 minutes and that pause could stretch into an hour if another strike hits down close by.
The Three Lions are due to start their World Cup campaign next Wednesday against Croatia before facing Ghana and Panama. They have already played New Zealand while out in the United States and will be hoping to put in a strong display against Costa Rica, assuming the game does go ahead, this evening.
This is unlikely to be the last issue with weather at the tournament. Games at last summer’s Club World Cup were heavily impacted with Chelsea‘s knockout clash against Benfica finishing hours after it was supposed to.
On the complete opposite end of the weather spectrum, heat is expected to play a major part in the tournament. Mandatory water breaks will happen in most games with South America nations and the likes of Spain and Portugal expected to cope far better than England and other colder European nations.