CHESTER, Pa. — Saturday’s match between the Philadelphia Union and Orlando City SC at Talen Energy Stadium was postponed to Sunday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. ET due to severe weather in the area.
The decision to postpone the match was made by Major League Soccer after a meeting with both clubs to determine the best interest of all parties.
“There was a lot of people on the phone call,” Union manager Jim Curtin said. “It was a tough decision to get made. It affects a lot of different things from a competitive standpoint, from a fan standpoint. People wanted to get the decision right and I think they did at the end of the day.”
Both teams went out on the field for warmups, but never came back out for the procession to start the game due to lightning in the area.
“The last thing you want is a situation that New England had where it was a stop-start-stop-start so I think at the end of the day, the right decision was made and tomorrow at 4:30, we recognize that we have a big game. We have to take all three points.”
Although it did not rain much around the stadium, thunder and lightning kept the game under a delay for just over an hour before the final decision was made.
The starting lineups can be changed before kickoff tomorrow, but since Orlando City plays in the U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday and the Union are riddled by a few injuries, the matchday squads are likely to stay the same.