JAKARTA - The 2026 World Cup final is not threatened despite warnings of air quality in the area.
Health warnings have been issued by officials in New York and New Jersey after forest fires from Canada, which have affected most of the northeastern United States (US).
However, the final on Monday, July 20, 2026, early morning WIB, between Argentina vs Spain at MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey, is not a concern for FIFA because the weather forecast is improving.
A Major League Soccer match between the Vancouver Whitecaps vs Chicago Fire at Soldier Field, Chicago, was postponed on Thursday, July 16, 2026, local time, due to poor air quality.
"The smoke is still hanging today, especially in the south, but it shouldn't be as intense as yesterday in our area. The smoke may thicken again at night until Saturday morning," the National Weather Service in New York wrote in a social media post on Friday, July 17, 2026.
The New York Office of Emergency Management posted the same day that air quality was "unhealthy for everyone". A day earlier, air quality was described as "very unhealthy".
US President Donald Trump met with FIFA President Gianni Infantino on Friday afternoon local time.
According to a White House official, members of the administration, including Andrew Giuliani - Executive Director of the White House FIFA Task Force - have discussed this issue with FIFA and are monitoring the forest fire situation.
Weather has caused problems at the 2026 World Cup for a variety of reasons. Most notably, the England vs Mexico match in Mexico City was delayed for an hour due to bad weather. Then, the France vs Iraq match was stopped for more than two hours.
Meanwhile, speaking ahead of the final, Spain midfielder Mikel Merino said players must be ready to put external factors aside.
"For a match as important as the World Cup final, you have to be able to put external factors aside as much as possible. Fortunately, we take care of every detail thanks to the Federation (RFEF) and the World Cup organizers," said Merino.
Spain trained outdoors in dangerous conditions in East Hanover, New Jersey, on Thursday, July 16, 2026, which worried experts because they thought the team should have held a training session indoors.
Air quality improved on Friday, but uncertainty lies in what will happen after rain that is forecast to reach 1.25 inches (3.17 centimeters) on Saturday.
Argentina come into the final looking to win a second consecutive World Cup, having beaten France in the previous final, while Spain are bidding for their second World Cup, having lifted the trophy in 2010.
Apart from that, England and France will meet in the third place match in Miami on Sunday, July 19, 2026, early morning WIB.
The Golden Boot title will also be determined after the last two matches of the 2026 World Cup. Currently, Kylian Mbappe (France) and Lionel Messi (Argentina) have both scored eight goals.
Meanwhile, Ousmane Dembele (France) and Mikel Oyarzabal (Spain) each scored five goals. The goals scored in the third place match are counted in the total goals.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
