England's World Cup warm-up against Costa Rica delayed by lightning and heavy rain in Orlando

England’s final World Cup warm-up friendly against Costa Rica was thrown into doubt on Wednesday after lightning and torrential rain forced a delay to kick-off at Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando, Florida.

The Three Lions had been scheduled to kick off at 4pm local time, but a heavy downpour less than two hours before the scheduled start left large pools of water sitting on the pitch, with officials suspending proceedings as lightning continued in the area.

Thomas Tuchel’s side are using the match as the last piece of preparation before travelling to their Kansas City base ahead of the World Cup 2026, which begins on Thursday, 11 June. Inter&Co Stadium, the home ground of MLS club Orlando City SC, was chosen as the venue for the friendly.

England’s tournament begins next week with a Group L opener against Croatia in Dallas, and Tuchel had been looking to use the Costa Rica match to sharpen his squad and build momentum before the competition gets underway. The Three Lions are considered among the favourites to lift the trophy.

With the weather showing little sign of relenting at the time of the delay, it remained unclear whether the match would go ahead at all or be significantly curtailed.