Things Romania – Cyprusin the women's football WC preliminaries, was interrupted for about two hours due to heavy rain. The turf at the Arc de Triomphe was flooded, which is why the game could not be resumed immediately after the weather stopped.
An unexpected storm on Saturday afternoon highlighted the technical problems at the Arc de Triomphe stadium, inaugurated in 2021. The drainage system at the arena in the center of the Capital is practically non-existent. And the disabled area was also flooded.
Unconventional methods were used to remove the water from the land. They worked for more than an hour, the firemen intervened and finally the game resumed. But the problems at the stadium remain.
Dinamo will play in a stadium with big problems
Dinamo will play here at the end of the play-off and, possibly, at the start of the next season. After the semi-final with Craiova University in the Romanian Cup, which will be played at the National Arena, the “dogs” will leave the country's biggest stadium.
It will be closed to football during the summer, hosting several large-scale concerts, among the famous artists who will perform in Bucharest are those from Iron Maiden and Metallica.
Incredible pictures on the Arc de Triomphe. The drainage system, non-existent
The film of Saturday's events, which once again showed the fragility of Romania's infrastructure:
It was the 20th minute of the women's national team's match with Cyprus, in the preliminaries of the World Championship. An unexpected hailstorm brought the match to an abrupt halt. Referee Nadine Reichmuth sent the players to the locker room.
The torrential rain continued for about an hour. The Swiss center then went out onto the court to see if the ball bounced and moved properly on the turf. He did not let the game go, and the organizers began to drain the field with a specific device for removing water from the lawn.
After a few minutes, at 17:15, the referee came out on the field again. They signaled that the turf was unplayable and continued efforts to drain the playing surface.
New scenes followed. Firefighters intervened in large numbers to help remove the water from the field. They used their intervention storms, recalling the scenes in League 1 when the organizers of the games used wooden benches to clear the pitches of water or snow.
Two hours after the interruption, the referee came out on the field for the third time. He thoroughly checked every corner of the green rectangle and finally decided to let the game go.
VIDEO. The grounds of the Arc de Triomphe were flooded
The game resumed after a two hour and 15 minute break, thanks to the efforts and unconventional methods of the firefighters. However, questions remain regarding the practicability of the Arc de Triomphe in times of severe weather.
Not only the turf suffered, but also the stands. In the area dedicated to people with disabilities, the rain penetrated, water pooling under the seats.
Water entered the disabled area
37 million eurosit cost the construction of the Arc de Triomphe stadium
