FIFA final decision on World Cup final move due to ‘danger’ conditions | Football | Sport

The World Cup final will go ahead at its planned 8pm kick-off time in New Jersey on Sunday, despite worries over ‘dangerous’ conditions. European champions Spain face defending world champions Argentina at the MetLife Stadium for the match, in what promises to be an action-packed instant classic for the ages.

However, smoke from wildfires in Canada had put the location of the World Cup final into question, with degraded air quailty proving potentially problematic for players, staff and fans. The air quality was rated ‘unhealthy for sensitive groups’ this week – with NJ.gov defining those groups as people with asthma, lung disease or heart disease, as well as older adults, children and infants. Meanwhile, a health expert has warned that the climate could be ‘dangerous’ for some fans.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, pulmonologist, Dr Vin Gupta, said: “It not only is going to be terrible, terrible air quality. It’s hot, and that can cause an extreme amount of stress on the heart [for players]. That is a very powerful and dangerous one-two ​punch to the human body. It’s ​going to be critical to ⁠maintain core body temperatures as low as possible.”

However, FIFA have no plans to change the time or location of the World Cup final. Bloomberg report that a White House official has confirmed that no major formal meetings are scheduled regarding the matter.

However, there have been informal discussions about the decision between FIFA and Andrew Guiliani, who is the head of the White House’s World Cup task force. A National Weather Service spokesperson, meanwhile, confirmed that staff have been consistently stationed at the FIFA command centre in Miami and will continue to monitor the environment over the weekend.

It comes as Spain and Argentina will be ready to do battle at the MetLife Stadium, regardless of the weather. Luis de la Fuente’s men secured their spot in Sunday’s final with a 2-0 rout of France, Mikel Oyarzabal converting from the penalty spot in the first-half before Pedro Porro wrapped the game up in the second.

Argentina, meanwhile, managed a shock 2-1 upset of England on Wednesday evening, the Three Lions bowing out of the competition in ruthless fashion. Anthony Gordon gave his nation the lead 55 minutes into the match, only for Enzo Fernandes to draw Argentina level with five minutes left to play.

Despite being knocked out of the competition in the semi-finals, England’s job is not yet done in North America. They will now face France in a third-place play-off clash at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida, at 10pm on Saturday evening.