For those amongst the World Cement readership who have somehow managed to miss the news: the FIFA World Cup is well underway. For those not interested in football (not soccer), apologies, but there is a point behind this – please bear with me. With this World Cup taking place across three nations – Canada, the US, and Mexico – much fuss been made and many tabloid news stories have been written on the topic of how players from typically cooler climates will endure the heat.
FIFA’s solution has been to implement compulsory 3 minute ‘hydration breaks’ midway through each half of every match, effectively turning the ‘game of two halves’ into a game of four quarters. Needless to say, this has not been a popular change amongst the players, the coaches, the pundits, or the audiences. Particularly farcical is the fact that hydration breaks are being implemented at matches taking place in enclosed, air-conditioned venues, like the Dallas Stadium (usually known as the AT&T Stadium) – all in the interests of fairness.
Now whilst it’s true that practically nobody involved in any of the actual football being played is in favour of the new regime, the TV advertising slots sold during these breaks are estimated to be worth a cool and refreshing US$250 million in the US alone, and approximately US$1 billion worldwide; making TV executives the true winners of the 2026 World Cup.
Anyway… where was I going with this? Oh, yes, well those worried about the impact of high temperatures on players from Europe at least need not have worried as the continent endures (at the time of writing) a series of lethal heatwaves making the Americas seem cool in contrast. The UK’s Met Office issued a rare ‘red’ heat warning that covered much of Southern England and parts of Wales with the UK’s 49 year June temperature record of 35.6°C being broken on 24 June (36.1°C). And then on 25 June (36.7°C). And then again on 26 June (37.3°C).
And that, by the standards of what has been happening in mainland Europe, is mild with temperatures peaking at 45.1°C in Spain and 44.3°C in France. As well as serving as a worrying indicator of what’s in store for the world if climate change is left to proceed unabated, the current European heatwave (gradually moving eastwards at this point) has so far resulted in 1300 excess deaths, a nuclear reactor shutting down, schools closing, infrastructure failing, and dozens of drowning deaths as people seek refuge from the soaring temperatures.
So here we are; another year, another set of temperature records broken. All of which, according to scientists at World Weather Attribution, would have been impossible if not for man-made climate change. All of this goes to underline the importance of the cement industry’s decarbonisation efforts – everything that producers can do to reduce emissions today, helps secure a better future for us all.
