FIFA President Gianni Infantino was unable to travel to Miami for the World Cup third-place playoff between England and France after severe thunderstorms and heavy rain grounded flights in and out of New York on Saturday. England defeated France 6-4 in the match he missed.
Infantino, who had been in New York for a joint appearance with U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday, said in an Instagram video recorded Saturday that weather conditions made flying impossible. He instead visited the final stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, where Spain and Argentina are scheduled to meet in Sunday's final. The storms also improved New York's air quality, which had been degraded by smoke from Canadian wildfires.
The weather disrupted World Cup preparations as well. Spain cancelled its final training session on Saturday, while Argentina began its session with a delay.