England’s last-16 World Cup tie against Mexico in Mexico City descended into extraordinary chaos on Friday following a dramatic five-and-a-half-hour sequence of confusion.
Fifa initially moved to bring the Azteca kick-off forward by six hours, citing concerns over forecast storms including the risk of lightning and flooding near the stadium.
The original plan would have seen the match shifted to 12:00 local time, a move that immediately sparked fury from both the Football Association and their Mexican counterparts.
Both national associations were described as angry that such a significant change was being proposed less than 48 hours before kick-off on Sunday.
Among the issues raised were the impact on fan travel, the logistics of changing the staging of such a huge event at short notice, and the impact on the teams’ preparations.
Andres Vaca of radio station TUDN first broke the story of the potential schedule change, leading to widespread bewilderment among players, officials, and supporters alike.
The Football Association knew nothing about a potential schedule change when BBC Sport journalists began to raise questions, with sources then briefing that an official announcement was imminent.
England’s squad was wrapping up an open training session in Kansas when the first ripples of news began drifting across social media.
Morgan Rogers and Marcus Rashford faced the media and gave answers that showed calm, insisting any change would not affect the squad’s preparations.
At around 21:30 BST, England boarded their chartered flight to Mexico City without knowing what time their match would kick off.
Mexico manager Javier Aguirre, carrying out his media duties in Mexico City, described the proposed changes as a “kick in the gut” as the row intensified.
Reports in Mexico suggested the BBC had been part of lobbying around the kick-off change, though a BBC spokesperson stated clearly the corporation was “not involved in these discussions.”
Mexican journalist Gibran Araige posted on social media that “everything points to the match staying at 6pm,” adding that “both federations are annoyed” as the U-turn gained momentum.
Sources close to the England camp told BBC Sport that lengthy discussions between all parties were continuing behind the scenes in an attempt to persuade Fifa not to amend the fixture.
Just before midnight BST, sources confirmed the kick-off time would remain as originally planned at 18:00 local time on Sunday, which is 01:00 BST on Monday.
The England Supporters’ Travel Club had been allocated 3,000 tickets for the match, all of which sold out at the ballot stage in December, with fans’ travel plans a key factor in the final decision.
Two flights landing in Mexico City from Atlanta on Sunday morning at 09:55 and 11:55 would have left supporters stranded had the match been moved to a 12:00 local kick-off.
Pushing the Brazil versus Norway tie, scheduled for 21:00 BST on Sunday, to avoid a fixture overlap was also cited among the logistical barriers counting against the proposed change.
Dr. Barney Wainwright, senior research fellow at Leeds Beckett University, noted that altitude at the Azteca typically causes maximum aerobic capacity to drop around 10%, with a knock-on effect to performance.
Wainwright added that the prospect of stoppages for thunderstorms in the evening could actually prove advantageous for England, giving players a chance to recover from the physical demands of altitude.
