England could face the prospect of seeing some of their matches delayed by HOURS at the World Cup, with FIFA unlikely to abandon games affected by extreme weather.
Participating countries are bracing themselves for delays thanks to the prospect of thunderstorms at host cities in the US.
Daily Mail Sport understands that FIFA will deal with each instance on a case-by-case basis.
However, insiders have disclosed that thanks to time pressures and competition integrity, it is highly unlikely that games will be abandoned and replayed at a later date.
That means that the Three Lions, who have late afternoon starts in Boston and New York, could spend lengthy amounts of time waiting for storms to clear. Their opening fixture with Croatia is set to be played under a closed roof in Dallas.
While FIFA declined to comment, a precedent of sorts was set at the Club World Cup last year.
England’s final two World Cup group stage matches could be delayed by hours due to weather
FIFA are unlikely to abandon matches due to any storms, and instead choose to delay them
Chelsea, who went on to win the US-based tournament, had their match with Benfica in Charlotte delayed for close to two hours thanks to a lightning strike in the area, despite the fact they had only five minutes left to play. That led then manager Enzo Maresca to claim the US was not fit to host the competition.
After returning to the field Benfica scored a late equaliser thanks to a controversial penalty, with Chelsea eventually prevailing 4-1 after extra time, four hours and 38 minutes after kick-off.
England have been bracing themselves for storms at their two friendly matches in Florida, but there has been a marked improvement in the long-term forecast.
