ST. GALLEN, Switzerland (AP) — A world cup A warm-up match between Switzerland and Jordan ended in chaos on Sunday amid abnormal weather conditions ahead of the tournament, which was expected to be filled with heavy thunderstorms.
With Switzerland leading 4-1 in the final game before returning to the United States, the match referee blown the final whistle in the 88th minute after heavy rain pounded the field for several minutes.
After the Swiss national team took an honorary lap and some players completed their post-match interviews, it was announced on the broadcast that the team had been called by Norwegian referee Rohit Sagi and told to return to the field and prepare to complete the 90 minutes.
Afterwards, the Swiss Football Federation sent a message to international media via WhatsApp: “We will play the last minutes. The game is not over.”
Play resumed after a 15-minute delay as the water slowed the ball, causing it to splash out of puddles after each tackle. The second final whistle sounded within about three minutes.
Heavy rain and thunderstorms are possible for some World Cup matches in the United States. A year ago, in six games of the World Cup, fifa club world cup Weather caused a total delay of eight and a half hours.
Tight match schedules for national broadcast networks around the world become even more complex at the World Cup.
Switzerland dominated Sunday’s match against World Cup debutants Jordan, with Breel Embolo and Granit Xhaka scoring in the first half after Dan Ndoye’s shot from the penalty spot.
Jordan reduced their lead in the 52nd minute with Odeh Al Fahouri’s shot from outside the penalty area, and Swiss substitute Christian Fasnacht made it 4-1 in the 79th minute just before the rain started.
On Tuesday, Switzerland headed to a training camp in San Diego in preparation for World Cup matches against Qatar, Bosnia and Herzegovina and co-host Canada.
Jordan is at the bottom of the World Cup group with defending champions Argentina, Austria and Algeria.
___ AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup
