2026 World Cup: Paraguay vs. France Rewrites History (for the Worse) Before It Even Begins
The Paraguay-France match in the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup rewrote history even before the opening whistle. And it did so in a negative way—though not strictly in terms of sports statistics. As noted by the authoritative *The New York Times*, in fact, never in the history of the tournament had a match been played in such scorching temperatures. At Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, the thermometer read 38° C, with temperatures expected to reach as high as 43° during the match. Humidity, exceeding 40%, made the heat feel as high as 46°.
Nothing like this had ever occurred in any edition of the World Cup, not even those played in notoriously “hot” countries like Mexico, South Africa, or Qatar. As *The New York Times* itself pointed out, however, the previous record had also been set in the United States. To be precise, we have to go back to June 24, 1994, when Ireland and Mexico faced off in Orlando during USA ’94 and the temperature on the field exceeded the fateful 43°. It will not escape the notice of the most observant that the two rivals at the time were part of the same group as Arrigo Sacchi’s Italy—Group E.
In any case, the Paraguay-France match kicked off as scheduled at 5 p.m. local time, 11 p.m. Italian time. Before the match, FIFA had not ruled out postponing the kickoff time, but another uncertainty loomed over Philadelphia: bad weather. Rain was expected to hit the Pennsylvania city around 8:00 p.m., along with the risk of thunderstorms. And, as the 2026 World Cup has already shown, the prospect of lightning automatically causes any outdoor sporting event to be postponed.
To address the heat emergency, organizers had put in place a special plan to protect fans in the stands. Dozens of misting systems and as many as ten free water distribution points had been set up along the route to Lincoln Financial Field in an effort to mitigate the effects of a heat index that, as mentioned, neared 44 degrees.
On the technical front, France entered the match with a significant absence in midfield. Aurélien Tchouaméni, a mainstay at Real Madrid and an undisputed starter in Didier Deschamps’ plans, did not take part in the match due to a muscle strain in his left thigh. In his place, alongside Adrien Rabiot, was Manu Koné, who had already been called upon by the French head coach earlier in the tournament. Otherwise, France fielded its usual starting eleven, with Mbappé and Olise coming off a magnificent performance against Sweden in the Round of 16: the two had been the standout players in the 3-0 victory over the Scandinavians at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, with the Real Madrid captain now on six goals in the tournament’s scoring standings.
Paraguay, for its part, arrived in Philadelphia riding the wave of its upset victory over Germany in the Round of 16. La Albirroja, which had finished third in its group, had already stunned the world by eliminating the Germans, and Deschamps and his team had been warned: against the South Americans, a defensive wall that would be difficult to break down was expected, with Enciso and Avalos pairing up in attack and Almiron providing quality on the wings.
The winner of this match will face Morocco in the quarterfinals, which on Saturday evening eliminated Canada with a decisive 3-0 victory in Houston. The Atlas Lions, who reached the semifinals in Qatar in 2022, secured the victory thanks to a two-goal performance by Azzedine Ounahi and a late goal by Soufiane Rahimi, confirming their status as one of the hottest teams in the entire tournament.
