A sign advising fans of a weather delay is displayed during the World Cup Group I soccer match between France and Iraq in Philadelphia, Monday, June 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Derik Hamilton)
A photographer shelters from the rain as play is suspended during the World Cup Group I soccer match between France and Iraq in Philadelphia, Monday, June 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Heavy rain and thunderstorms prompted a rare World Cup weather delay on Monday, when the halftime break during a match between France and Iraq lasted 2 hours, 10 minutes.
It was the first rain delay of the tournament and the first time in at least several decades that a World Cup match was delayed midgame because of inclement weather. Halftime began at 5:50 p.m. EDT and the game resumed at 8 p.m. — 1 hour, 55 minutes longer than the scheduled 15-minute halftime break.
There was also heavy rain ahead of Monday night’s game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, which started on time.
With France leading 1-0 at halftime, scoreboard messages directed the crowd at Lincoln Financial Field to take shelter in the stadium’s covered areas, warning that a severe storm was on the way. Sheets of rain fell through halftime as thousands of fans huddled in the concourse and under balconies.
The stoppage was initially expected to extend the halftime break by 15 minutes. As the delay dragged on, stadium officials announced that “the game will resume when deemed safe.”
The teams returned to the field to warm up after about 1 hour, 40 minutes, prompting cheers from the crowd. Crews used squeegees to push standing water toward the sideline of the swampy field.
A rule used by FIFA pauses games for 30 minutes if lightning is detected within 8 miles. Each strike resets the clock.
France and Iraq played through a downpour that started in the 37th minute. Fans donned ponchos and most stayed in their seats until they were told to find shelter at halftime.
FIFA long had a reputation for continuing matches even through extreme weather. A 2014 game between the U.S. and Germany continued in Brazil even after torrential downpour that flooded parts of the surrounding city.
World Cup regulations do not specify weather conditions that would prompt a delay to the start of matches or an interruption. However, the regulations say “in the case of a match being abandoned as a result of force majeure after it has already kicked off … the match shall recommence at the minute at which play was interrupted rather than being replayed in full, and with the same scoreline.”
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AP World Cup:
The Associated Press
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