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Anyone who lives in the northeastern part of the United States has no doubt witnessed the borderline apocalyptic scene unfolding in the sky.
Smoke from the wildfires currently ravaging Canada have found their way south of the border to many US cities, affecting air quality and causing health problems for citizens in the process.
Smoke from wildfires in Canada shrouds the Manhattan skyline in Brooklyn, New York, Thursday, July 16, 2026. (Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The question on everyone’s mind, however, is whether the FIFA World Cup final will even be played in the shadow of the Canadian wildfire smoke.
IF AIR QUALITY IS POOR, ARGENTINA COULD BE HURT BY SPAIN’S STYLE IN WORLD CUP FINAL, FOX ANALYST SAYS
With the championship game taking place in East Rutherford, New Jersey, that would mean players and fans would be in the direct path of the smoke.
FOX Weather anchor Bob Van Dillen broke down what effect the smoke would potentially have on the game, as well as how we got here.
“We had all these fires breaking out in Canada on Monday afternoon and the smoke was immediately lifted into the atmosphere,” Van Dillen explained. “The wind was out of the northwest, and it dragged it right through the Great Lakes, and now it’s establishing itself across the mid-Atlantic, New York City… and it’s been a nuisance, if not dangerous, the last couple of days.”
The New York/New Jersey Stadium is pictured in East Rutherford, NJ, two days before the 2026 World Cup Final between Spain and Argentina on July 17, 2026. (Odd Andersen/AFP via Getty Images)
When talking about the dangers that smoke represents, Van Dillen broke it down in terms of air quality index, or AQI.
As he explains, 0-100 represents normal, healthy conditions, while anything above 101 is potentially dangerous and becomes more dangerous as the number rises.
“When you get to about 150 with that AQI, everybody starts feeling it and you have to start taking this a little bit slow when you get outside,” Van Dillen said. “Yesterday, for example, East Rutherford on Thursday, it topped out at 245… That’s when you shouldn’t be out.”
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That’s a staggering number, but not even close to the ceiling when you consider that places like Detroit saw their worst AQI numbers since weather services began tracking air quality back in 2000.
The Motor City peaked with an AQI above 600 on Thursday.
Van Dillen put things into context when he explained what conditions would look like for the players on the field to be exposed to the smoke.
“If they had played it yesterday, it would be the equivalent of playing that game back and forth, 90 minutes, smoking two cigarettes.”
While Van Dillen’s assessment is spot on, he may have even undersold things regarding the length of the game.
In the past 20 years, four of the last five World Cup finals have gone to extra time or penalties, meaning this Sunday’s final has a good chance of going 30 minutes longer than usual.
Spain trained at the Gotham Training Facility in East Hanover, New Jersey, ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup final against Argentina on July 16, 2026. Lamine Yamal and Pedro Porro did light individual stretching during the open portion of practice instead of the team’s passing drills. Hazy skies from Canadian wildfires reduced air quality and visibility over the New York metropolitan area. Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images (Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images)
When it comes to the game, which is supposed to be played in northern New Jersey on Sunday, Van Dillen offered an optimistic view.
“If the game was to be played on Thursday … I’d say you probably shouldn’t play it,” Van Dillen said. “But on Saturday we eventually have a cold front that will swing through and by the evening hours on Saturday it will push the largest plume of smoke out to the coast.”
Van Dillen explained that Sunday may look a little hazy, but nothing compared to what New Yorkers and New Jerseyans have experienced this week.
“I think we have a nice little window for your Sunday afternoon,” Van Dillen opened. “I think it’s going to be okay, the AQI is expected to be 75, so it’s still in a good range.”
Pakinomist and Outkick reached out to FIFA to see if they had contingency plans in place should conditions dictate a postponement, but no response has been received.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino and the White House have been in talks over Sunday’s World Cup final in New Jersey as the tri-state area continues to deal with poor air quality caused by wildfires raging in Canada, sources confirmed to Pakinomist Digital on Friday.
The discussions were characterized as informal as they continue to monitor the wildfire situation. The sources added that there were no contingency plans in place to make changes to the game due to the weather.
The Spain national team trains at the Gotham Training Facility in East Hanover, New Jersey on July 16, 2026 ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup final against Argentina. Lamine Yamal and Pedro Porro participated in light individual stretching during the open portion of practice instead of the team’s passing drills. Spain trained under hazy skies as smoke from ongoing Canadian wildfires reduced air quality and visibility across the New York metropolitan area ahead of Sunday’s final at the New York New Jersey Stadium. Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images (Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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It’s also worth noting that the Spanish national team has been training in northern New Jersey this week leading up to the game, while the Argentine team stayed in Atlanta.
Whether it is beneficial for one of the teams remains to be seen, but hopefully neither players nor fans will find out.
