FIFPRO
The worldwide players' union whose heat and workload data challenges FIFA over 2030 expansion plans.
Last refreshed: 25 July 2026
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Recorded 19% of matches played above its heat-postponement threshold
2026 FIFA World Cup: FIFPRO says one match in five was too hotBackground
FIFPRO recorded that 19% of the 2026 World Cup's 104 matches were played at a wet bulb globe temperature of 28C or above, the level at which the union recommends postponing play, in data current to 16 July . Six venues, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Miami and Monterrey, were rated extremely high risk. The gap between that threshold and FIFA's own 32C trigger for mandatory cooling breaks is four degrees, and talks on a written protocol covering delayed kick-offs and rescheduling have run since early July.
FIFPRO is the global federation representing national players' unions, positioned as the collective voice of professional footballers in disputes with FIFA and confederations over pay, release windows and playing conditions. Its heat monitoring at the 2026 tournament extended a role it has taken at prior World Cups, gathering independent physiological data rather than relying on organiser-supplied figures.
The union's heat findings now sit inside the wider argument over a 64-team 2030 World Cup, floated by FIFA president Gianni Infantino and pushed again by CONMEBOL's Alejandro Dominguez. FIFPRO opposes the expansion on workload grounds, projecting that elite internationals would face between 70 and 83 matches a season across club and country, a load it argues heat exposure would only compound.