Philadelphia storms cause World Cup chaos hours before Kylian Mbappe and France play Iraq

France’s second World Cup game, against Iraq in Philadelphia, was facing significant weather disruption hours before kickoff with a major storm heading towards the stadium.

Signs went up inside of Lincoln Financial Field, which FIFA has renamed ‘Philadelphia Stadium’ for the tournament, ordering anyone inside the venue to immediately find shelter.

Organizers also told fans that gates would be kept shut for longer than originally anticipated and told anyone heading to the stadium to stay away for now and remain indoors.

‘Due to inclement weather in the region, gates opening will be delayed,’ a statement said.

‘If you are not in the area, please do not travel to Philadelphia Stadium at this time. A new gates opening time will be communicated once the weather has passed. If you are near Philadelphia Stadium, please take shelter.’

Gates eventually opened around 30 minutes later than initially planned. The game is scheduled to begin at 5pm local time. 

A FIFA fan park in the city was also closed down due to the storms, which are forecast to hit the city throughout the afternoon and into the evening.

Nearly 100 miles away at MetLife Stadium, just outside of New York, storms and heavy rain are also expected to hit ahead of Norway vs Senegal later in the day. 

A watch party for that game, scheduled to be held at the venue of the US Open tennis tournament in Queens, was called off due to the bad weather.

France opened their tournament in New York against Senegal, running out 3-1 winners with star striker Kylian Mbappe scoring twice. 

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