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Rain and thunderstorms moving through the northeastern United States are expected to disperse most of the Canadian wildfire smoke that has hung over the region, with meteorologists forecasting improved air quality in New Jersey in time for Sunday's World Cup final between Spain and Argentina.
Smoke from nearly 900 active wildfires burning across Canada has traveled more than a thousand miles into the United States, affecting air quality in states from Michigan to New Hampshire to Virginia over the past week.
At least 18 states, including New Jersey and New York, had air quality alerts in place as of Friday.
New York City recorded some of the worst air quality readings in the world on Friday, with parts of the city measuring an Air Quality Index above 200, a level classified as "very unhealthy." In Philadelphia, officials declared a "Code Purple Air Quality Emergency Day," warning residents that the general public could experience negative health effects from particulate matter in the air.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Thursday that the city was distributing free masks to help residents cope with the smoke, describing air quality levels as dangerous for city residents.
A storm system moving through the region on Saturday brought heavy rain and thunder to East Rutherford, New Jersey, where the final will be played at the venue known during the tournament as the New York-New Jersey Stadium, prompting state police to briefly clear the stadium's seating bowl and field for safety.
New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill warned residents of the potential for damaging winds, tornadoes, flash flooding and large hail as the storm passed through the state.
Meteorologists said the same storm system is expected to move most of the smoke out of the region before kickoff. Tyler Roys, a senior meteorologist at AccuWeather, said the thickest, most hazardous smoke is not expected to affect New York City or much of the northeast on Sunday, though faint, lingering haze could remain.
Jeff Berardelli, chief meteorologist and climate specialist at WFLA-TV, said the storm front would largely clear the atmosphere, leaving conditions dramatically improved for spectators. Forecasters project temperatures around 27 degrees Celsius (80 Fahrenheit) with light breezes and low humidity for kickoff.
FIFA said it remains in close contact with local authorities to monitor the effects of both the wildfire smoke and the weekend storms on field conditions ahead of the match.
The weather also affected both finalists' preparations on Saturday. Spain's training session at the Melanie Lane Training Ground in New Jersey was suspended and later canceled because of lightning in the area, in line with United States storm safety protocol, which requires outdoor sporting activity to pause if lightning is detected within an eight-mile radius of a venue.
The Spanish football federation said players held an indoor warm-up session instead, and FIFA confirmed no alternative outdoor time slot would be provided.
Argentina, training around five miles away in Morristown, was able to proceed outdoors after a 45-minute delay.
Spain reached the final by beating France 2-0, while Argentina advanced with a 2-1 win over England. The two teams are scheduled to kick off Sunday's final at 3 p.m. local time (10 p.m. GMT+3) at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
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