Game delays for lightning may be annoying, but they save lives – a sports meteorologist explains the risk

When nearby lightning forces officials to delay a big college football game, the backlash from fans can be fierce, especially if the sky over the stadium is still mostly blue.

Sports fans took to social media to complain loudly when nearby lightning forced several game delays on Sept. 19, 2026, including Florida State at Alabama, North Carolina at Clemson, BYU at Colorado State, and Charlotte at Appalachian State. The Alabama delays earned particular anger because there was no rain at Bryant-Denny Stadium at the time.

I’m a meteorologist who studies lightning and lightning safety around sporting events, so I am familiar with the risks and why those lightning rules exist.

My colleague and I documented 262 football-related lightning deaths and injuries in the United States between 1970 and 2023. That included 12 people who were injured by lightning that struck near Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, after a Green Bay-Tampa Bay NFL game in 2014, and about 40 high school players and coaches who were injured when lightning struck in the middle of a group of players running sprints during football practice in Grapeland, Texas, in 2004.

Lightning strikes can also be lethal. In 2024, one player was killed and eight others injured when lightning struck during a televised soccer match in Peru. In 1998, multiple players were injured when lightning struck during a soccer match in South Africa.

To understand why the NCAA has become a stickler for delaying games when lightning is nearby, let’s take a look at the science behind the safety protocols keeping fans and players safe when thunderstorms are nearby.

A real threat on and off the field

Large stadiums are of particularly high concern when it comes to lightning because of their open-air stands and large crowd sizes.

If lightning struck the bleachers during a game, electricity could travel through the metal seats, injuring or killing dozens of fans.

A strike to the turf could send ground current across the field, injuring or killing the players, coaches and game officials.

The likelihood of experiencing a lightning delay might be even higher soon. A new NCAA proposal, if approved by the Division I Cabinet, would move the start of the college football season a week earlier starting in 2027. That would mean more games played during the peak of the late summer and early fall lightning season, increasing the lightning risk further.

How NCAA lightning safety policies work

In college sports, lightning safety policies have been in place for nearly 30 years. First published in 1997 and regularly updated in the NCAA Sports Medicine Handbook, these policies give clear guidance on when to suspend and resume play.

• The 8-mile radius: Because lightning can strike 8 or more miles away from the parent thunderstorm – sometimes resulting in a bolt from the blue – safety policies require game delays when lightning is detected within that distance. Players clear the field, and fans are encouraged to go to a safe place, such as the stadium concourse. Remaining in the stands exposes them to lightning danger.

• The 30-minute clock: Electric charge in the clouds can linger after a storm has passed, so waiting 30 minutes after the last lightning flash is detected lets the threat subside. Each new lightning flash in the 8-mile radius resets the timer.

A 2018 study reviewed 136 college football and NFL games that were delayed by lightning between 2010 and 2015. Half of the delays occurred when games were already underway, and the majority of the delays were over in less than 90 minutes.

Delays are frustrating but necessary

Because lightning can happen before or after a thunderstorm is overhead, rain is a poor indicator of lightning danger. Most lightning injuries and fatalities occur before the rain starts or after it ends, when people think they’re safe.

Today, some teams use dedicated event meteorologists with accurate radar and lightning data, to monitor conditions surrounding the stadium. Their expertise can minimize the amount of time that games are delayed.

While it can be frustrating to wait out a lightning delay, keep in mind that a game can always resume, but lightning injuries can last forever.

So if you’ve grumbled about a game delay and thought football-related lightning incidents in the United States were rare, “Not so fast, my friend,” as longtime ESPN college football analyst Lee Corso might say. Corso’s own rental car, unoccupied at the time, was memorably struck by lightning outside Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, Virginia, before the 2000 Georgia Tech-Virginia Tech game. The game ended up being canceled because of the storm.

Chris Vagasky is a member of the National Lightning Safety Council.