The World Cup kickoff between Mexico and Ecuador in Mexico City was delayed by an hour on Tuesday due to lightning in the area.
The Round of 32 match was scheduled to begin at 9pm ET at Estadio Azteca, but the postponement was officially announced about an hour before kickoff.
Officials had to wait for the lightning to pass before approving a new start time. Players also had to warm up before kickoff, and there were no pre-game ceremonies at the time the postponement was announced.
At the beginning of the World Cup, lightning and heavy rain caused a two-hour halftime delay in the France-Iraq match in Philadelphia.
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The match was scheduled to start at 7pm local time in Mexico City, but was postponed due to lightning and started about an hour later than scheduled.
Even during the rainy postponement, fans remained in their seats and appeared to have a good time.
FIFA said it was following “safety protocols established by local authorities” and would begin matches “as soon as it is safe to do so.”
Typically, the clock is reset each time there is a new lightning strike in the area, and the delay does not end until the lightning has disappeared for a period of time.
