For European supporters, the issue is not simply one late match. It is the flow of the entire day.
The report says some fans are waking up to find two or three games already finished, then facing a wait of roughly 11 hours before the next fixture. That breaks the familiar World Cup routine, in which matches often build through the afternoon before reaching a prime-time climax.
The result is a tournament that demands planning. Fans must choose between sleep, live football and the risk of discovering results before watching a delayed broadcast.
The complaints are understandable, but the counterargument is equally strong. Supporters in Australia and other distant markets have long accepted kickoffs at 1 a.m., 3 a.m. or 5 a.m. when following European football. For those fans, a North American World Cup may finally provide more manageable viewing hours.
That balance is the unavoidable cost of making the tournament genuinely global. No schedule can deliver prime-time football to Europe, North America, Asia and Oceania at once. Every convenient window for one continent creates an awkward one for another.
The time difference cannot be removed, but the impact can be managed. High-profile fixtures can be distributed across more accessible slots, while broadcasters can provide spoiler-free replays and condensed coverage for supporters who cannot stay awake.
The report says the tournament is scheduled to run for around four weeks and finish on July 19. As the next wave of matches arrives, the key question will be whether frustration fades as fans adapt-or becomes a defining criticism of the North American format.