There are much better games and plans than an Hyundai Ulsan – Mamelelodi Sundowns in a Club World Cup, but few duels with more incidents than a confrontation that took the South African team, the richest in its continent, and that positions it to be in the round of 16. A drama for the Korean team, who stayed in the gutter for a goal by Iqraan Rayners at 36 minutes. That were actually much more, because an electric thunderstorm forced the suspension of the group F.
Suspended by a thunderstorm
Just 1,000 fans gathered at the Explicor Stadium in Orlando, so the entrance would be lower than most First RFEF meetings, the third category of Spanish football. Of course, the thousand followers, mostly from Mamelodi, took it very seriously, with a previous dance that accompanied its players until the meteorology caused chaos.
In the purely sports, the South African team managed to capture its broad domain of possession. But Ulsan touched the draw at 70 minutes through the Venezuelan end Matías Lacava, which he finished alone against Ronwen Williams. But Africa, this time, won the elements and achieved its first victory in a meeting that would never have been for the Club World Cup. Like so many others that will occur in a phase of immense groups, full of paradoxical crosses.
The Ulsan was leaving a ray, but, at least, not a real one. The protocol that was activated is the same that is used in professional leagues such as NFL, MLS or MLB, which consists of real -time monitoring through ray detention systems. This device is assembled on the radius of up to 15 kilometers around the stadium. If an incident is detected in this range, the mandatory delay of the party is activated and the stands are evacuated.
How does the protocol work in case of a storm?
At least, 30 minutes of suspension have to be stored since the last ray observed within the danger radius. From there, evacuation of players and the public of the field, together with the fans, as has happened in a Ul Ulsan Hyundai – Mamelodi Sundowns for which it is difficult to find even professional testimonies of what happened there.
Similar situations were already lived in the 2023 U-20 World Cup played in the US, as well as in the major league matches. In fact, Orlando is one of the cities that records the most activity of this type. As a curiosity, the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, where Real Madrid debuts against Hilal, has an automatic alert system for progressive evacuation and shelters designated in interior halls.
But of all this will be forgotten Ulsan and Mamelodi, who made his fame as the richest team in Africa. The South African team has a style similar to that of Guardiola, called “Shine & Piano”, based on short passes and rapid combinations. It is a lyrical game that allowed him to mitigate the South Korean rival to the point of reducing his possession to the testimonial field. For them, it was the perfect storm.