Footballers normally worry about rain turning a pitch into mud.

In England in 2026, the problem became almost the exact opposite.

The Anglian Combination League, which has 85 amateur teams across Norfolk and Suffolk, has postponed the start of its 2026–27 season because the region’s football pitches have become dangerously hard after weeks of extreme heat and drought. The league had been scheduled to begin the following weekend but will now start on August 29.

The league’s board made the decision unanimously after several pre-season matches were cancelled, while others reportedly resulted in multiple injuries. Officials said many of the grass pitches had become so dry that the ground was effectively “rock hard.”

The unusual decision was linked to an exceptionally hot and dry British summer. England experienced a record-breaking dry July, while drought conditions affected large parts of the country. In the East of England, water restrictions were introduced as reservoirs and rivers came under increasing pressure.

For amateur footballers, this created an unusual problem. A pitch that looks playable from the sidelines can become extremely unforgiving when the surface has dried and hardened.

And that is what makes the story so bizarre.

A football season wasn’t delayed because of snow, flooding, storms or freezing temperatures.

It was delayed because there wasn’t enough rain.

The grass had become too hard to safely play football on.