Uruguay National Football Team Faces Travel Delays Before FIFA World Cup Match

New Delhi, June 15: The Uruguay national football team encountered travel issues ahead of their first match in the FIFA World Cup 2026. Due to technical difficulties related to permits, their flight from Cancun, Mexico, to Miami was delayed by several hours. Despite these challenges, the team finally arrived in South Florida on Monday.

Uruguay is set to face Saudi Arabia in their opening match of Group H on Tuesday at Hard Rock Stadium. The team had completed their practice session in Cancun on Sunday morning and was scheduled to depart for the United States that same day, but their travel plans were disrupted.

Reports indicate that the team was supposed to take off around 2 PM for Fort Lauderdale, where they were to stay at a hotel. However, issues with essential documents and permits for entry into the United States prevented the flight from departing on time. The airline later acknowledged that there was a mistake in the permit process and issued an apology. This situation affected the team’s entire schedule, forcing players to wait longer at the airport.

FIFA stated, “FIFA maintained continuous communication with the Uruguay national team during the delay and worked with airport and operational partners to expedite the process and minimize disruptions to the team’s travel arrangements.” According to Uruguayan media, the flight the team was supposed to board from Cancun was not granted entry into the U.S. A report from Telemundo claimed that FIFA, which organizes charter flights for teams, caused delays at Cancun Airport due to administrative issues.

As a result, the team’s entire schedule was pushed back by two to three hours, after which they finally boarded an Aeromexico flight. Uruguay is preparing for its 15th FIFA World Cup appearance. Following an impressive fourth-place finish in South Africa in 2010, this will be their fifth consecutive World Cup. Despite a tumultuous qualification campaign, Uruguay secured their spot in the FIFA World Cup 2026 through the challenging South American qualifiers.