PM intervened in row over Mexico-England kick-off time

The prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, and the foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, played a role in a dispute over the kick-off time for England's World Cup match against Mexico. The issue arose when Fifa considered moving the match to an earlier time due to a forecast of thunderstorms. However, the British government and the Football Association argued against the change, citing the potential impact on the 3,000 England fans traveling to the match.

The prime minister instructed officials to make the case for keeping the original kick-off time, while the foreign secretary spoke with the British ambassador to Mexico to request that British diplomats also make representations against the change. This effort was aimed at ensuring that the traveling fans would not miss the match if the kick-off time were to be changed.

Despite the initial consideration to move the match forward by six hours, Fifa ultimately decided to stick with the scheduled start time. However, the weather still had an impact on the match, as the kick-off was delayed by an hour due to the thunderstorms. The involvement of the prime minister and foreign secretary in this matter highlights the significance of the match and the government's interest in supporting the English team and its fans.

The prime minister has publicly commented on the government's efforts to maintain the original kick-off time, stating that they had to "battle" with the Football Association to achieve this goal. The Football Association, on the other hand, has not made any public statements regarding the matter. The fact that the government was involved in this dispute demonstrates the importance of international sporting events and the potential implications for fans and teams.

The situation ultimately resulted in a delay of the match, rather than a change to the scheduled kick-off time. The government's intervention, in this case, was focused on minimizing the impact of the weather on the traveling fans and ensuring that they could attend the match as planned. The outcome of the match itself is not mentioned in the context of this dispute, which was primarily centered on the scheduling and logistics of the event.