Fifa World Cup 2026 venues could become unplayable due to climate change
The report highlights pitches once used by 18 iconic players including Liverpool forward and Egypt team captain Mo Salah. His Egyptian home ground could face more than a month of unplayable heat annually. Picture: Catherine Ivill/Getty
The 2026 Fifa World Cup could be North America’s last without urgent climate adaptation, according to a new study highlighting extreme weather threats.
The study, ‘Pitches in Peril’, found that 10 of the 16 venues are at very high risk of experiencing extreme heat stress conditions.
By 2050, nearly 90% of North America’s host stadiums will need adaptation to extreme heat and one third will face water demand equalling or exceeding supply.
The report also highlights risks to venues for the World Cup in 2030 (Morocco, Spain, and Portugal) and 2034 (Saudi Arabia).
It also points out the impact of warming climate on grassroots soccer pitches once used by 18 iconic players.
“As someone from Spain, I can’t ignore the climate crisis,” said World Cup-winner Juan Mata, referencing last year’s devastating Valencia floods.
This year’s Club World Cup in the US offered a troubling preview, with conditions described as impossible by players.
The tournament saw extreme heat and thunderstorms force world football’s governing body Fifa to adapt protocols — adding cooling and water breaks, shaded benches, and air fans.
According to the report, 14 of the 16 World Cup stadiums in the US, Canada, and Mexico exceeded safe-play thresholds in 2025 for at least three major climate hazards — extreme heat, unplayable rainfall, and flooding.
Thirteen already experience at least one day each summer exceeding Fifa’s threshold for drinks breaks of 32C Wet-Bulb Globe Temperature (WGBT) — an internationally recognised index used to measure human heat stress in direct sunlight.
The report says forward Mo Salah’s Egyptian home ground could face more than a month of unplayable heat annually, while Nigeria captain William Troost-Ekong’s childhood pitch could see 338 days of extreme heat by 2050.
CLIMATE & SUSTAINABILITY HUB
