EAST RUTHERFORD: Spain and Argentina prepared to do battle in Sunday’s World Cup final in New Jersey as organizers said they were keeping a close eye on smoke from wildfires in Canada.
Lionel Messi’s Argentina are bidding to become the first team since Brazil in 1962 to win back-to-back World Cups, while Spain are trying to win a second title after their maiden victory in 2010.
Organizers said they were “monitoring closely” the smoke that has choked skies over large areas of the US.
“There’s been discussion about it, and we have somebody with the National Weather Service that sits in FIFA headquarters there, so we’re monitoring closely,” Andrew Giuliani, White House World Cup task force executive director, told a briefing.
US President Donald Trump will be among a crowd of over 80,000 spectators as the largest World Cup in history reaches its climax in the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
