The Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary actively campaigned to prevent FIFA from advancing the scheduled kick-off time for England’s World Cup fixture against Mexico.
Sir Keir Starmer directed government officials, in coordination with the Football Association, to advocate for the match to proceed according to its original schedule.
In a separate move, Yvette Cooper engaged with the British Ambassador to Mexico, requesting that diplomats in the region formally oppose any scheduling changes. The objective was to ensure that approximately 3,000 traveling English supporters would not miss the match due to a sudden time shift.
FIFA had initially proposed moving the kickoff forward by six hours in response to forecasted thunderstorms.
Ultimately, FIFA maintained the original start time, though the match was eventually delayed by one hour due to inclement weather.
During a reception at Downing Street, Sir Keir remarked: “We had to battle with the FA to get it back to where it was, which was counterintuitive.”
The Football Association has declined to comment.
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