Florida is broadly considered the “lightning capital” of the country, with more than 2,000 lightning injuries over the past 50 years. Southeastern states, including Texas, Colorado, North Carolina, Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Missouri, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania are most at risk, according to U.S. Centers For Disease Prevention and Control.

Economic Ramifications Of Extreme Weather

Sport has an increasingly volatile opponent, extreme weather. Player, spectator and staff safety will always be the top priority, however, for major, televised sports tournaments, delays have wide-ranging economic ramifications.

The timing and duration of delays caused by extreme weather can impact spectators staying in-stadia, have broadcasting implications for wider-viewership and scheduling, as well as leading to physical health risks and loss of focus from players and officials.

Schedule delays can force broadcasters to redistribute airtime, negotiate compensations, or lose advertising slots. Repeated and consistent game disruption, like we have seen during FIFA Club World Cup, indicates a pattern that could undermine viewer satisfaction, advertiser value and lead to reduced rights fees in the future events due to perceived risk.

This pattern could also lead to economic impacts to entire economies when bidding to host major tournaments. “I think it’s a joke to be honest, it’s not football. I struggle to understand. I can understand that for security reasons, you suspend the game. But if you suspend seven, eight games, that means that probably [this] is not the right place to do this competition,” shared Chelsea FC manager Enzo Maresca.

In-stadia staffing and operational costs will rise, as ushers, security and concessions staff remain on duty for longer. Revenue could also be impacted if fans have to endure prolonged stadium confinement and demand compensation. With some FIFA Club World Cup delays stretching to up to two hours, some fans chose to leave entirely.

Currently it might be that additional time in concessions areas will be a benefit, potentially leading to increased sales of food, drink and merchandise. There is no industry standard currently, but in the future there may feasibly be a duty of care to support the care comfort of fans coupons for hydration or food, as we see when delays are experienced in the aviation sector.

Teams could potentially face added expenses, from extended rentals of hotels, buses, and likely more medical staff coverage. Performance impacts are a consideration too, including physiological and mental impacts for athletes competing in extreme heat or experiencing long breaks during play. After the match in which his team endured cooling breaks and a long delay, Palmeiras manager Abel Ferreira said, “I don’t know if you could read the faces of the players but they felt the weather and the climate and that impacted them.”

Enzo Maresca touched on another player impact. Loss of focus. “As a manager, it’s difficult to manage two hours suspended,” he said. “How can you keep them two hours inside, focused?” He went on, “we are happy to be in this competition. But it’s something that is not normal.”

Chief operations officer for the 2026 Men’s World Cup, Heimo Schirgi, will no doubt be watching these goings on intently. Ahead of the tournament he said, “everyone is eager to come back after the Club World Cup and say ‘OK, this is what we learned. This is what we need to change. This is what we can keep.’”

Delays at the FIFA Club World Cup caused by extreme weather have done more than just disrupt games, they have exposed the growing financial risks climate change poses to global sport. From extended broadcast windows and disrupted advertising schedules to rising staffing costs, the potential for fan compensation, and logistical strain on teams, the economic toll is clear and growing. As climate volatility increases, these disruptions will erode sponsor confidence, inflate operational budgets, and could devalue future media rights. The question facing 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup organisers, and those of all major global sports tournaments, is now how well prepared they are for extreme weather impacts, and how their organisations are helping tackling the cause, not just treating the symptoms. The cost of inaction is no longer theoretical.