How Mexico vs. England Kickoff Debate Led to Five Hours of Chaos

Weather forecasts for Mexico City pushed FIFA towards an unprecedented move.

Soccer is always at the mercy of the elements. | Wu Wei/Xinhua/Getty Images

The 2026 World Cup round of 16 match between Mexico and England at the Estadio Azteca on Sunday is still expected to kick off at the originally scheduled time of 6 p.m. (local), 7 p.m. ET.

The World Cup calendar descended into chaos on Friday when local reports first revealed FIFA was actively considering moving kickoff forward several hours. World soccer’s governing body reserves the right to unilaterally alter the schedule and the potential for thunderstorms and flooding in Mexico City during the match prompted a plan to shift the start time from 6 p.m. to midday.

That meant likely avoiding the worst of the weather later in the day.

The midday temperature in Mexico City on Sunday is forecasted to be 70F (21C), with the humidity at that time a comfortable 59%. It would have not have been a problem to play in those conditions, in stark contrast to the scorching weather in some of the American host cities right now.

There was certainly upside for England fans back home, too. The match kicks off at 1 a.m. BST on Sunday night into Monday morning, which means having to stay up late or catch up on the action after the fact. The intended change would have seen the tie get under way at 7 p.m. BST instead.

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Why Mexico vs. England Will Kick Off As Planned

England fans back home were hoping for a more convenient kick off. | Anthony Devlin/Getty Images

Problems arose when it became clear that neither England’s Football Association or the Mexican Football Federation had been briefed by FIFA before the expected change became public knowledge. It was only after being pressed for information and reaction by reporters that either was aware, scrambling to get some clarity from FIFA over what on earth was going on.

The short notice of it all was a major contestation, with consequences for logistics and English fans, some of whom had planned to arrive in Mexico City on the morning of the match. The England team boarded a flight out of Kansas City on Friday not knowing what time the game would be. Mexico manager Javier Aguirre publicly slated the decision to change the kickoff on national radio.

Questions were also asked why no such weather-related concession had been considered for Paraguay vs. France, being played in extreme heat in Philadelphia on Saturday. The temperature in the city will peak at 100F (38C) two hours before kickoff and just barely drop for the match.

Overlapping between Mexico vs. England and Brazil vs. Norway was also something organizers and broadcasters ideally wished to avoid.

In the U.K., the BBC had plenty to gain from an earlier kickoff because of the potential to draw the biggest audience for a live television event so far this year, but was forced to deny any involvement in allegedly “lobbying” FIFA to change the schedule for England as conspiracy theories snowballed.

After frantic and what were reported as “angry” talks between FIFA and both national federations, there was a backtrack on the change and the status quo of the original match schedule was restored.

As for England fans back home, those not staying up through the night will have an opportunity to watch a full rerun of the match, as though it were live, from 7.10 a.m. BST on Monday morning.

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How Weather Conditions Could Affect Mexico vs. England

Lightning would mean delays. | Carl Recine/Getty Images

If thunderstorms, which are a normal daily occurrence in Mexico City at this time of year, do happen during the match, the action could end up being delayed.

For the safety of the players, staff and fans, lightning strikes detected within an eight-mile radius of the venue equate to an automatic 30-minute delay, during which time the clock resets if more lightning strikes occur. There has to be a full half-hour window with no lightning.

England’s final warmup friendly against Costa Rica in Orlando last month was delayed by an hour because of an electrical storm. As many as six matches at last summer’s Club World Cup in the United States also experienced weather delays, while one match each in the U.S. and Mexico have already had weather delays so far at the World Cup this summer.

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