By Amy Tennery
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (Reuters) -Borussia Dortmund manager Niko Kovac called for later kickoff times after his players again laboured through scorching heat in a dramatic 3-2 defeat by Real Madrid in their Club World Cup quarter-final at 3 p.m. ET (1900 GMT) on Saturday in New Jersey.
Dortmund played in temperatures exceeding 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius) last month for a group stage game at the same time of day in Cincinnati.
WHY IT IS IMPORTANT
Scorching temperatures at the Club World Cup have raised concerns for the 2026 World Cup, where a record 48 teams will face off in the quadrennial global spectacle in the sweltering North American summer.
Soccer’s world governing body, FIFA, have implemented cooling breaks and mitigating measures, but coaches and players have complained, with frequent afternoon kickoff times making teams compete in direct sun.
Nine of the 16 host cities for the 2026 World Cup face conditions considered “extreme risk” for heat-related illness and the global players union FIFPRO said it is exploring better ways to protect players.
KEY QUOTES:
Dortmund coach Niko Kovac:
“These athletes had to bring top performance, but again that’s the tournament mode and we will see the same next year during the World Cup… We have to consider the players.”
“This is very hard for someone, and the players they must play these games… But OK, this is this is the tournament, we need to play. It’s my suggestion that the kickoff time would be a little bit later. We played in Atlanta (at 9 p.m. ET) so the intensity is also much higher.”
“As a spectator, you would like to see intensive, aggressive, up and down football, so when it’s too hot, then it’s difficult to play this kind of football.”
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by William Mallard)
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