Organizers of the World Cup 2026 announced on Friday that they are closely tracking the thick smoke blowing in from the Canadian wildfires. The drifting plumes have blanketed vast expanses of the United States just ahead of the highly anticipated final match between Argentina and Spain, scheduled for Sunday at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
The situation has raised public health alarms as neighboring New York experiences severe levels of dangerous air pollution, casting a shadow over the tournament’s climax.
“There has been active discussion regarding this issue, and we have positioned an expert from the National Weather Service directly at the FIFA headquarters on-site. We are monitoring the situation minute by minute.”
— Andrew Giuliani, Executive Director of the White House World Cup Task Force, during a press briefing.
