Article by Alexandru Tomuțiu – Published Wednesday, June 10, 2026 10:38 p.m. / Updated Wednesday, June 10, 2026 10:45 p.m.
The 2026 World Cup warm-up match between England and Costa Rica, scheduled for Orlando, was postponed after the pitch was flooded hours before kick-off following heavy storms. The game should have started at 23:00 (Romanian time). Another start time has not yet been set.
A weather warning was issued at the stadium and giant screens advised fans to “take shelter”. Wednesday night's match is England's last test before their World Cup debut against Croatia in a week's time, but adverse weather conditions in Florida threaten to go ahead.
Despite the situation, there is a chance the match will go ahead, although the delay could be extended if the storms persist. Extreme weather conditions in the US have been a topic of debate ahead of this summer's tournament, and players will be taken off the field in the event of lightning, which could lead to extended disruption.
England v Costa Rica, interrupted due to storm
“Today's match against Costa Rica has been postponed due to the weather conditions in Orlando. We will provide more information as soon as we have it,” said the official statement issued by the England national team on social media.
Similar situations occurred several times during last year's Club World Championship in the USA, where six matches were interrupted due to electrical storms. One such case was the match between Chelsea and Benfica, which ended after 4 hours and 38 minutes from the start time.
In addition to storms, heat is another concern. Hydration breaks are planned as temperatures in some host cities exceed 30 degrees Celsius, which will affect both matches and daily training.
