Smoke from Canadian wildfires blanketed the northeastern US in a dystopian haze on Saturday, turning the air acrid, the sky yellowish-grey and prompting health warnings on the eve of the FIFA World Cup final.
The marquee match, pitting Argentina against Spain, will be played on Sunday at the open-air MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, just across the river from New York City, where the skyline was obscured by dense smoke, and people wore masks outdoors.
The final is scheduled to kick off at 3 pm local time and is expected to draw more than 80,000 spectators. Organisers were monitoring air quality, although no schedule change had been announced.
NYC briefly ranked as the world’s most polluted city on Saturday, according to IQAir, and readings had exceeded 200, a level considered very unhealthy.
The smoke also complicated preparations. Spain trained outdoors in northern New Jersey on Thursday despite hazardous conditions. On Saturday, its final outdoor session was cancelled under lightning-safety protocols as thunderstorms swept through the area. Argentina’s training in Morristown also began 45 minutes late.
White House World Cup task force executive director Andrew Giuliani said officials were “monitoring closely”. The open-air stadium leaves those attending exposed if smoke concentrations rise again.
Wildfire smoke contains fine particles that can penetrate deep into the lungs and aggravate respiratory and cardiovascular conditions. Children, older people and those with existing illnesses were advised to limit outdoor activity.
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani urged residents to remain indoors and avoid unnecessary travel. “Thunderstorms are expected to bring damaging winds strong enough to down trees and power lines, along with heavy rainfall that could cause flash flooding,” he wrote on X.
The storms brought transport risks, but forecasters said rainfall and shifting winds could clear much of the haze before kick-off.
More than 950 wildfires were burning across Canada on Saturday morning. Forecasts indicated that air quality around the stadium could improve from unhealthy to moderate by Sunday, leaving organisers cautiously optimistic that football’s biggest match would proceed safely and on schedule.