England will face France in the third-place play-off at the World Cup on Saturday night, but the match could be delayed or suspended if thunderstorms hit the Miami Stadium09:50, 17 Jul 2026England's third-place play-off against France could be moved due to fears of thunderstorms. The two sides are set to meet in the fixture neither team wishes to contest at the Miami Stadium on Saturday at 10pm (UK time).‌Despite both starting their respective semi-final matches as the favourites to progress to Sunday's showpiece final, Thomas Tuchel's England lost to Argentina, while Didier Deschamps' France were beaten by Spain.‌It means that England and France will now contest in what FIFA has called the 'Bronze Final' match in Miami - but the game could be delayed or even suspended with thunderstorms forecast to hit the area near to kick-off.‌According to the BBC weather forecast, "thundery showers and a moderate breeze" are predicted between three and five hours prior to kick-off. Those predictions may shift as the fixture draws nearer.FIFA regulations stipulate that play must be halted or postponed if lightning occurs within eight miles of the venue. The match can only restart once 30 minutes have elapsed since the most recent lightning strike.Several fixtures at this World Cup have already experienced comparable hold-ups due to lightning and stormy conditions. England's round of 16 encounter with Mexico was pushed back by an hour owing to severe weather near the Azteca Stadium.‌The forecast would pose no issue in a fully-enclosed venue like those in Dallas, Atlanta, Houston or Vancouver. Yet, because the Miami ground doesn't have a fully retractable roof, the battle between England and France will be exposed to the weather.England have the opportunity to secure their finest World Cup result since 1966 with a win over Les Bleus, having fallen short in both of their previous third-place play-offs against Italy and Belgium in 1990 and 2018 respectively.‌However, beleaguered manager Thomas Tuchel may find it difficult to motivate his squad for the occasion, given the gut-wrenching manner of their semi-final capitulation against Argentina.Speaking in the wake of the defeat, he said: "None of our players and none of the French players want to play this match. They want to play the final. We gave everything to achieve that.‌"Everyone plays to win the World Cup, but that's how it is. We have one less day of recovery than France, but we will do it with professionalism."We'll have to wait four years before participating in another World Cup. Reaching the semi-finals is already an achievement in itself, of course."Many great footballing nations are eliminated before the semi-finals. It's an achievement, but nobody wants to hear that at the moment, myself included, because we're very demanding of ourselves."Article continues belowJoin our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.Content cannot be displayed without consent