Drenching downpours forced World Cup organizers in Houston to cancel the city’s outdoor viewing party on Monday, then compelled Henry Schriefer, a soccer fan visiting from Germany, to watch a Tuesday match between France and Senegal at a less-than-appealing venue: a downtown food court.
The tropical storm system responsible for the wet blanket was officially named Arthur on Wednesday, hours before Houston was set to host a match between Portugal and the Democratic Republic of Congo. It’s the first to form in the Atlantic basin this year.
NRG Stadium, temporarily renamed Houston Stadium for the World Cup, is a covered venue, so the match was not at any risk of being delayed. But the weather this week has been less than ideal. The brunt of the rain fell on Monday, flooding parts of the region and prompting organizers to cancel the official FIFA Fan Festival downtown.
“We just knew it was not going to be a good situation to open,” said Chris Canetti, president of the city’s World Cup organizing committee.
Showers and storms also moved through on Tuesday, forcing Mr. Schriefer, 20, into the food court, while over-21 fans filled sports bars. By late afternoon, the rain let up, and the sun was out in time for fans to watch Argentina play Algeria.
“It turned out to be a very nice evening,” said Matt Moreland, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office for the Houston area. Mr. Moreland said that throughout the week, the Weather Service has been in touch with tournament and local officials about weather threats.
Tropical Storm Arthur posed little threat to the match on Wednesday. The system was expected to move east along the Gulf Coast toward Louisiana. (It also posed no threat to the Dallas area in North Texas, where England was playing Croatia, despite some misplaced concern in the British media.)
In Houston, some fans who arrived early for Wednesday’s match had to deal with light showers while waiting to enter NRG Stadium. But an hour before kickoff, the rain let up and the sun began to peek through the clouds.
“Luckily,” Mr. Canetti said, “I think we dodged the bullet here.”
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