Key events
Back to Orlando, where the sprinklers have been turned on at the Inter&Co Stadium. At England’s request. I can’t in all honesty explain why. Perhaps it’s satire. Americans love a bit of English satire.
You can also fill those empty moments back up to the brim with our comprehensive Player Guide. This priceless resource features every single player going to North America this summer, with potted bios written by experts from all around the world. Its homepage is linked below, plus some details of the guy who scored the last-minute winner that sent England home in that aforementioned Bracketology fever dream. Anyway, give it a whirl, and we’ll see you again just before full-time.
There will most likely be a lot of this sort of hanging about during this World Cup. Just as well, then, that the Guardian has created this marvellous monument to time-wasting: Bracketology, in which you can curate your very own World Cup story. Or you can simply hit “shuffle” and see whose name pops up as champion. I’ve just done that, and can exclusively report that DR Congo beat Germany in the final. England didn’t get out of their group, meanwhile. I’d love to know what happened against Panama. Anyway, give it a go, and I’ll see you back here in three hours. We’ll wait for you.
Kick-off now 10pm BST, 5pm EDT
Kick-off has been confirmed for 5pm local time, subject to no further delays, reports David Hytner. That’s 10pm BST.
OBO MBM Postbag. “This MBM is taking on a reassuringly familiar ‘we all know there’ll be no play at Headingley today, just a matter of time before they call it’ vibe. Is it uncouth to observe that it is, in the end, just a pre tournament kick about, not worth taking risks with a soggy pitch?” – Tom Hopkins
“Since the last match against New Zealand had worries about the pitch, and this one has a rain delay, perhaps Thomas Tuchel should ask for the English cricket captain to join the squad to pass on his experience. It’s not as if he’s got anything planned for the next week or two” – Bob O’Hara
“With the amount of surface water, having Rice on the pitch seems appropriate” – Andy Gordon
Jude Bellingham gets the nod over Morgan Rogers in the number 10 role. Declan Rice is back in the midfield, having joined up with the squad late due to Arsenal’s participation in the Champions League final. His club team-mate Noni Madueke gets the nod over fellow Gunner Bukayo Saka on the right.
The teams
England: Pickford, Konsa, O’Reilly, Rice, Stones, Anderson, Kane, Bellingham, Gordon, Madueke, James.
Subs: Guehi, Saka, Rashford, Livramento, D Henderson, J Henderson, Burn, Mainoo, Rogers, Watkins, Eze, Toney, Trafford, Spence, Quansah.
Costa Rica: to come
It’s still raining in Orlando, though no longer a torrent, and it’s also brightening up. However there’s still that threat of thunder and lightning. Also to be taken into consideration is the state of the pitch: it should clear of standing water in time for kick-off, providing the rain doesn’t get heavier again, but would Thomas Tuchel be happy to risk his players on it? Well, if it answers the latter question any, the team news has just dropped …
David Hytner reports that more lightning has been predicted by stadium staff long used to such delays. But Florida weather being what it is, all is not yet lost.
It seems that the safety protocols involve a 30-minute delay after the last lightning strike rather than 45 minutes. We are looking at a delay one way or another – and it looks like it will be more than 20 minutes; possibly one hour. We’ve just been told by some of the organisers at the stadium that they are expecting more lightning. Disclaimer – the Florida weather is very unpredictable. At a little after 3pm local time, a small number of fans were allowed into the stands from the shelter of the concourses.
Jacob Steinberg is also in situ. Presumably he and all of his electronic equipment are in better nick than the poor chap pictured below, because he’s just managed to ping a message to tell you all that “we are hearing an hour delay”.
Here’s a picture which further illustrates how damp it is in Orlando. Florida wasn’t like this in the brochure.
Kick-off now 9.20pm BST, 4.20pm EDT
David Hytner reports from Orlando that the delay has just been announced as 20 minutes. The new kick-off time will be 4.20pm local, 9.20pm BST.
Kick-off delayed
No big surprise here. The kick-off has been officially delayed due to the heavy thunderstorm in Orlando that has left the pitch at Inter&Co Stadium waterlogged. It’s not yet been announced how long the delay will be – or indeed if the match will start at all. Expect more of this over the next month.
More from David Hytner.
I’ve seen some rain storms in my time – one in Jakarta during an Arsenal pre-season tour springs to mind – but this one in Orlando is right up there. A colleague has just dashed 50 yards into our hotel from the car park and has had to get changed because he was utterly drenched. The game’s announcers have just said that the ticket collection point for fans has been temporarily closed. They “hope to resume operations as soon as it is safe to do so.”
… so yes, we hope kick-off will be as scheduled. But there’s been some torrential rain in Orlando today, which might end up causing a delay. Here’s an update from our man at the scene, David Hytner.
Absolutely torrential downpour here in Orlando – with a flash of lightning seen at 1.38pm local time, with the England game against Costa Rica due to kick-off at 4pm local time (9pm BST). According to the stadium’s safety protocols, if “lightning is detected within eight miles, the referee can suspend the match with play resuming no earlier than 45 minutes after the last strike.” It is due to clear up before kick-off so hopefully all will be fine … it’s worth noting that if there is further lightning, the 45-minute clock would reset.
Chelsea fans may remember a similar situation unfolding at the Club World Cup in North Carolina last year. Heavy-eyelidded MBM hacks certainly do.
Preamble
England have concluded their World Cup warm-up business against Costa Rica before. That was in 2018, and after this …
… they made it all the way to the semi-finals in Russia. Say what you like about omens and vibes: they might not materially help, but neither do they hinder. Let’s just not talk about the other time the two countries met. Oh Mr Roy! Kick-off in Orlando, Florida is at 9pm BST. It’s on!
