UK flooding sees League One football match postponed on New Year's Day

Wigan Athletic's match against Huddersfield Town has been postponed due to severe flooding in surrounding area.

More than 150 flood warnings have been issued by the Met Office for New Year's Day, with strong winds and heavy rain battering the UK. An amber rain warning covering parts of North West England was in place until 09:00 on Wednesday and that has impacted Wigan.

The Latics had been due to take on Huddersfield in a 3pm kick-off in League One at The Brick Community Stadium, but the club have been forced to postpone, even though the pitch remains in a decent condition.

Wigan said in a statement: "Heavy rainfall over Tuesday night has made roads treacherous in the area, although the playing surface at the Brick Community Stadium was deemed playable.

"However, safety concerns regarding the public areas surrounding the ground and the strain on local emergency services dealing with a number of major incidents, which have been affected by severe flooding, led to the league fixture being called off.

"Access to the area is severely restricted with many access routes closed due to flooding, and the emergency services are unable to provide resources to support the matchday operation.

"The news is naturally disappointing as Shaun Maloney and his players were looking forward to the highly-anticipated New Year's Day fixture, but the safety of both sets of supporters is of paramount importance."

Confirming the news, Huddersfield added: "Access to the area is severely restricted, with many routes closed due to flooding. Please do not travel to the fixture if you haven't set off already, and we wish a safe journey home to any supporters who are already enroute."

Wigan sit 16th in League One going into 2025, while Huddersfield are fourth after playing 22 matches so far this season.

Lancashire is one of the worst-hit areas of the UK, with the Met Office stating that heavy rainfall is “likely to lead to disruption including flooding in some locations” with a chance some places could see more than 10cm of rain.

Meanwhile, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said it had been experiencing a high number of 999 calls due to flooding.

Click here to read article