New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani wants answers from FIFA after the World Cup organizer reversed a policy at the last minute, meaning fans are no longer permitted to bring plastic water bottles into venues this summer.During an interview with The Athletic at City Hall on Thursday afternoon, the Mayor said he intended to “follow up” with FIFA on the matter, saying he had been “concerned” after The Athletic revealed FIFA had altered its policy just one week before the start of the World Cup.According to emails seen by The Athletic, FIFA have informed World Cup ticket holders that they have updated their code of conduct, telling fans that “reusable water bottles are no longer permitted at the FIFA World Cup 2026™ stadiums”.This is in stark contrast to the policy in their code of conduct around three weeks ago, which then said: “For the avoidance of doubt, empty, transparent, reusable plastic bottles, up to (1 liter in) capacity, may be brought into the stadium.” This would have allowed fans to refill bottles at water fountains to keep hydrated. It also meant they would not be required to buy bottles of water inside venues. Coca-Cola is one of FIFA’s largest sponsors of the World Cup and its soft drinks will be on sale, including its water product Dasani.In response to FIFA’s new policy, Mamdani told The Athletic: “I was just alerted to that (Thursday) morning and it is concerning because the heat that we are talking about is not just the heat that the players are in, it is also the heat that spectators are going to be subjected to for arguably a longer period of time, as they will be there before the game starts and after the game finishes.“That is something that we are going to follow up (with FIFA) on to better understand the rationale. We don’t (want) anyone skimping on water because of the cost of water at the stadium, if they would otherwise be drinking. You (should) want to make it easier.”In a 52-page report published in May, World Weather Attribution’s scientists claimed that approximately 26 of the 104 World Cup games are likely to be played when the host city’s Wet Bulb Global Temperature (WBGT) exceeds 26 degrees Celsius (78.8°F), with five games at the six-week tournament likely to be played in conditions with a WBGT that exceeds 28°C (82.4°F).WBGT combines temperature, humidity, wind, and sunlight to provide a measure of heat stress, and it is used by the military, sports scientists, and safety experts to prevent heat-related illnesses.