England v Norway kick-off time could be moved as fans face watching in early hours

England could face further disruption owing to the weather, with sweltering temperatures and forecast storms threatening their World Cup quarter-final against Norway. The mercury in Miami is expected to hit 34°C this weekend, with lightning also forecast.

Due to the high humidity levels, conditions are predicted to feel closer to 43°C when the match gets under way. The BBC's weather forecast is also predicting thunderstorms shortly before kick-off and throughout the match.

FIFA were forced to push back the Three Lions' round-of-16 clash against Mexico by an hour. There are concerns the fixture against Norway could encounter similar difficulties, with a cancellation or postponement also technically on the table should conditions prove too dangerous.

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The game currently kicks off at 10pm on Saturday night UK time and won't finish until well after midnight if extra time and penalties are required. Another delay by even and hour with the see football fans forced to stay up until the middle of the night once again.

England v Mexico eventually began around 2am in the UK and finished around 4am on Monday morning.

FIFA protocol requires a minimum 30-minute delay in the event of thunderstorms, with the governing body adhering to regulations set by local authorities throughout the tournament. This means that should any lightning strike be detected within eight miles of a stadium, the match must be halted.

FIFA is obliged to follow the guidance of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the United States. Their regulations stipulate that players must vacate the pitch and supporters move indoors, away from their seats, reports the Mirror.

Meanwhile, officials will take WBGT (Wet-bulb globe temperature) measurements 90 minutes prior to kick-off and once more an hour before matches at venues deemed particularly hot or humid. FIFA's tournament regulations leave open the possibility of matches being postponed if the temperature is deemed unsafe to play in.

England encountered such issues the previous time they were in Florida while preparing for the World Cup. Their final pre-tournament friendly against Costa Rica kicked off an hour late due to heavy rain and thunderstorms at Orlando City's stadium, which is located in the same state.

Thomas Tuchel told ITV at the time: "It gives us a little taste of what can happen in the tournament. We were aware of that before, now we experience it.

"It's no problem. It should not be an excuse to lose our mood or patience or to lose our hunger to play the game."

He reiterated: "No problem at all. We realised it when we were still at the hotel so it was easy we just said half an hour later in the bus and let's go."

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