The 2026 World Cup in North America will happen during peak summer heat. 14 of 16 stadiums regularly hit temperatures where athletic performance becomes dangerous, causing collapses and hospitalizations. FIFA knows this and is scheduling the most demanding matches during the hottest times anyway.
The 2026 World Cup is being hosted in June, July, and August across North America. That is one of the hottest times of the year in some of the hottest cities in the hemisphere. When WBGT hits 28°C, that is the threshold where the athletic performance becomes physically dangerous. Collapses happen. Hospitalizations happen. 14 of the 16 stadiums exceed the safe threshold regularly. FIFA knows this. They have seen the data. They have read the research. And they have scheduled knockout matches, the most physically demanding features in the entire tournament.
