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Will the Canadian wildfire smoke affect Spain vs Argentina World Cup final?

From Al Jazeera · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Wildfire smoke from Canada has caused unhealthy air quality alerts across the United States, including the New York-New Jersey area.
  • The World Cup final is scheduled to take place in an open stadium in New Jersey.
  • FIFA is monitoring the situation but stated that air quality does not currently pose a threat to the final.

The World Cup final, scheduled for Sunday in New Jersey-New York, faces uncertainty due to dense wildfire smoke drifting south from Canada. Unhealthy air quality alerts have been issued across the United States, with Washington D.C. experiencing "very unhealthy" air on Friday. The New York and New Jersey metropolitan area reported air quality unhealthy for sensitive groups, an improvement from Thursday when the Manhattan skyline was barely visible.

There’s been discussion about it, and we have somebody with the National Weather Service that sits in FIFA headquarters there, so we’re monitoring closely.

— Andrew GiulianiThe White House World Cup task force Executive Director provided an update on FIFA's monitoring efforts.

Cities like Detroit and Chicago registered "hazardous" air quality index readings, with some trackers identifying them as the world's most polluted. Forecasters at the National Weather Service anticipate the smoke could intensify overnight into Saturday. The final is expected to draw roughly 80,000 fans to the open-air stadium in the Meadowlands, home to the NFL's New York Giants and Jets.

FIFA has stated that the current air quality situation does not represent a threat to the World Cup final. Tournament organizers confirmed they are monitoring the situation closely, with a National Weather Service representative stationed at FIFA headquarters providing updates. President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet with FIFA President Gianni Infantino on Friday.

I don’t believe that this should be as impactful as if you might be playing a game today.

— Peter MullinaxA meteorologist for the National Weather Service offered his assessment of the smoke's potential impact on the final.

Meteorologists suggest that winds over the Great Lakes could bring more smoke to the northeastern U.S., potentially maintaining hazy conditions. However, forecasts indicate some improvement for the region. Air quality forecasters are assessing whether additional smoke will move south following weekend storm systems. Previously, a Mexico vs. England match was rumored to be rescheduled due to weather, but organizers confirmed it would proceed as planned.

Some of the models are starting to indicate that we’ll start to pull down some smoke.

— Joel DreessenAn air quality forecaster discussed potential smoke movement affecting the region.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Al Jazeera. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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