The UK Prime Minister revealed that he and the Sports Minister intervened to prevent FIFA from moving the Mexico-England World Cup match kickoff six hours earlier due to weather concerns.
Foreign news agencies reported on 6 Jul 2026 that the UK Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary became involved in opposing FIFA's recent proposal to bring forward the kickoff time of the England versus Mexico World Cup match just days before the game.
Sir Keir Starmer, UK Prime Minister, instructed officials to file a joint objection with the English Football Association (FA) to keep the match at its originally scheduled time.
Meanwhile, Sports Minister Yvette Cooper spoke with the British Ambassador to Mexico, requesting the British embassy's assistance in opposing the proposed change to ensure that more than 3,000 traveling English fans would not miss the match due to the disruption.
Originally, FIFA planned on 4 Jul to move the match six hours earlier because of forecasts predicting thunderstorms. However, FIFA ultimately decided to keep the original start time, though the kickoff was delayed by one hour due to weather conditions.
Sir Keir Starmer said at a reception at 10 Downing Street, “We had to work with the English Football Association to restore the time to its original slot, which felt somewhat unusual.” The FA has not issued any public comment.
Reports indicated that the proposed time change was due to concerns about lightning and flooding around Mexico City's Azteca Stadium, which seats over 87,000 spectators.
Nevertheless, both the English and Mexican football associations opposed FIFA’s attempt to change the kickoff time less than 48 hours before the match, citing concerns about fan travel plans and the teams' preparation.
After over five hours of uncertainty, FIFA clearly announced that the match would proceed as originally scheduled.
In that match, England defeated Mexico 3-2, advancing to the quarterfinals to face Norway in Miami this Saturday.
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Source:bbc