More than 1 in 3 World Cup matches face dangerous heat risk, NPR analysis finds

More than one-third of 2026 World Cup matches are at high risk for dangerously hot, humid conditions, NPR found. In June 2024, assistant referee Humberto Panjoj fainted during a Copa América professional soccer match in Kansas City, Kan., which is near Kansas City, Mo., one of the host cities for this summer's tournament. Ed Zurga/AP hide caption

The men's soccer World Cup kicks off next week at 16 stadiums across North America, just as summer weather arrives in many of the host cities. Millions of fans, players and workers could be exposed to potentially harmful heat, an NPR analysis finds.

More than one-third of World Cup matches are at high risk for dangerously hot, humid conditions, NPR found, and dozens more matches come with moderate heat risk.

NPR looked at two decades of temperature data for each host city, as well as the time each World Cup match is scheduled to start, and checked those temperatures against heat hazard guidelines from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the American College of Sports Medicine.

The high-risk events identified in NPR's analysis include multiple high-profile matches, such as the game that determines which team takes home third place in the World Cup, and the World Cup final.

"Players can overheat, and match officials as well," says Donal Mullan, a climate scientist at Queen's University Belfast, who co-authored a study last year about heat risk at the 2026 World Cup.

"They can also overheat and collapse," Mullan warns. "This has happened to people."

In an email to NPR, a spokesperson for FIFA, the governing body for international soccer, wrote that the organization "is committed to protecting the health and safety of players, referees, fans, volunteers and staff."