Severe thunderstorms and lingering air quality concerns threaten to disrupt tonight’s World Cup final between Argentina and Spain at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
The match is scheduled to kick off at 8pm and will proceed as planned despite extreme weather across the region this weekend.
Flash floods swept through New York and New Jersey on Saturday, with tornado activity reported in some areas after roughly three inches of rain fell within a few hours.
Dramatic scenes showed vehicles submerged in water, residents wading to safety, subway stations flooded, and flight delays at John F. Kennedy International Airport.
While a Yankees game was cancelled Saturday, it will be played this afternoon, and organizers confirmed the World Cup final will begin on schedule.
Wildfire smoke from Canada has also drifted south, pushing haze over the city and prompting earlier air quality warnings at “very unhealthy” levels.
Conditions have improved slightly, though the open-air stadium leaves fans and players exposed to any shift in weather or air quality.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and the Spanish royal family will attend from a VIP box, while U.S. President Donald Trump is also expected to present the trophy.
Ahead of the match, Lionel Messi shared a message with his Argentina teammates, emphasizing the collective journey over individual titles.
“The nicest thing about all these years was never just the titles, but all the path,” Messi wrote, thanking staff and players for building a team “like a family.”
He closed by stating that regardless of the result, the group had already written “a story that we will never forget.”
