The Three Lions’ Round of 16 tie will kick off at Estadio Azteca at 1am (6pm local time) on Monday.
However, forecasts for Mexico City indicate that lightning strikes are likely to disrupt this schedule.
There were reports earlier this week that the game was scheduled to be moved up to Sunday at 7pm (English time).
FIFA now claims this was never taken into consideration, but Sky Sports’ Kabe Solhekor explained why the match could still be in jeopardy.
“FIFA has decided for the time being to kick off at 1am UK time as originally scheduled.
“But they say there’s an 80 percent chance of thunderstorms.
“If there’s a storm or there’s lightning, the players will be sent back to the locker room.
“Fans will be asked to leave the venue and go to the concourse to avoid the threat of lightning and the game will be postponed.
“Last summer, games in the United States were delayed by up to two hours, two and a half hours.
“If that happens, what happens if the game doesn’t kick off at 1am, instead it kicks off at 3am and goes to penalties?
“Fans should be prepared for the possibility that the game will not kick off at 1am, and they should also be prepared for the possibility that the game will last much longer.
“And that’s purely because of the threat of extreme weather here in Mexico Sunday night.”
Mexico coach Javier Aguirre criticized the original idea of moving the kick-off time earlier, calling it “disgusting”.
