Published on 6/21/2026
The match between the Iraqi and French teams faces the risk of being postponed for some time, or stopped during its holding due to weather conditions.
The Mesopotamian Lions will clash with the French Roosters on Monday at 12:00 (midnight) Mecca, Doha and Baghdad time, at Philadelphia Stadium, for the second round of Group Nine matches.
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The France-Iraq match faces the risk of being suspended
According to weather forecasts, heavy rains accompanied by thunderstorms are expected to fall after noon on Monday local time, and therefore strict protocols approved by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) will be implemented to deal with such new conditions, according to what the French network RMC Sport (rmcsport) reported.
In light of the dangers of storm waves that may be violent at times, if they occur, this will cause the match to be postponed or stopped for some time, just as happened in the Club World Cup, which the United States also hosted last summer (2025).
US federal regulations impose a mandatory 30-minute delay once lightning strikes within a circle with a diameter of 13 kilometers, and with each additional lightning bolt, a new pause period of another half hour is triggered.
Until now, the organizational matters related to the weather are proceeding without any problems after more than 20 matches were held in the United States alone, since the start of the tournament on June 11 of this year.
First case of postponement
The French network wondered whether the “Roosters” match against Iraq, which will start at 17:00 American time, will be the first to witness a forced stop or postponement, or whether things will proceed normally and all of this depends on the weather condition.
The French national team, runner-up in the last edition, began its campaign in the 23rd edition of the World Cup with an important victory over Senegal with a score of 3-1, and thus it seeks to achieve its second victory in order to resolve the issue of its qualification to the second round early, without waiting to play the third match against Norway.
As for the Iraqi team, it enters the difficult confrontation with France, burdened by the heavy defeat it suffered against its Norwegian counterpart 1-4, and hopes to come out with a good result, such as a draw, for example, that will preserve some of its chances of qualifying for the round of 32, before its final confrontation against Senegal.
