Điều gì sẽ xảy ra nếu trận đấu vòng bảng cuối cùng của World Cup bị hoãn do thời tiết xấu?

Weather delays could give FIFA a headache in the final round of World Cup group games.

The last two matches in each group will take place between Wednesday evening and the early hours of Sunday morning BST, with dozens of teams’ fate still to be decided.

FIFA protocols state that the final round of games in each World Cup group must kick-off simultaneously to avoid any country knowing in advance what they need to qualify, but that doesn’t mean they are guaranteed to end at the same time.

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Does FIFA have a plan if final group games are delayed by weather?

Kylian Mbappe in action as the rain lashes down during France's clash with Iraq (Image credit: Getty Images)

The last set of World Cup group games have kicked off at the same time since the 1986 tournament in Mexico, as a result of the infamous ‘Disgrace of Gijon’ in Spain four years earlier.

In that game, West Germany beat Austria 1-0 - a result that secured qualification for both teams at the expense of Algeria, who had already played their final group fixture, and involved neither team making any effort to score once the Germans had taken a 10th-minute lead.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino will hope there are no weather delays in the final round of group games (Image credit: PA)

FIFA have attempted to prevent that from happening ever since, with Article 12.4 of the official World Cup 2026 regulations stating that “the last two matches in each group shall have simultaneous kick-off times on the same day, unless stipulated otherwise by FIFA (e.g. in cases of force majeure).”

However, The Times reports that FIFA does not have a plan in place if any matches in the final round of group fixtures are delayed by weather, which could give certain teams an advantage.

On Monday night, France’s 3-0 win over Iraq in Philadelphia was hit by heavy rain and subject to a two-hour delay at half-time, because the Group I clash could not be safely restarted until the threat of thunderstorms had cleared.

But if the same thing happened in the final round of games, the other fixture in that group would not be paused to ensure both finished at the same time - meaning that the teams involved in the delayed match would know what they needed to do to qualify.

Meanwhile, if a game was abandoned due to bad weather, World Cup regulations state that it would restart on a future date from the minute that the match paused - allowing the two teams to tweak their game plans accordingly.

England will be aiming to secure top spot in Group L in their final group game (Image credit: FRANCK FIFE / AFP)

The unusual situation could impact England and Scotland, who are both looking to secure qualification for the knockout phase in their final group game.

The Three Lions’ Group L clash with Panama in New Jersey kicks-off at 10pm BST on Saturday, the same time as Croatia’s match against Ghana in Philadelphia, with Thomas Tuchel’s men above the African side only on goal difference at the top of Group L.

Meanwhile, Scotland face Brazil in Miami at 11pm BST tonight and are third in Group C, one point behind second-placed Morocco, who face Haiti in Atlanta.