Natal in flood alert ahead of USMNT World Cup opener

The United States will play Ghana in their World Cup opener on Monday, and it may be on a water logged pitch. The city is in a flood alert after nearly two days of rain and while it is not raining now, the forecast calls for more rain on Sunday night and into Monday.

Parts of Natal were flooded on Sunday and mudslides were also a problem. Over eight inches of rain had fallen in the city and the mayor imposed a state of alert.

A spokesman for the fire department said, "Our teams are alert and ready to avoid accidents and to not have the city come to a stop due to this."

The U.S. and Ghana are likely to play in the rain on Monday, which will further tear up a pitch that Mexico and Cameroon left chewed up on Friday. A slow or choppy pitch doesn't figure to favor one team or the other, as both can play a possession style, but rely more on their physicality anyway.