London: Manchester City’s Premier League game against West Ham on Sunday was called off due to a storm battering northern Europe.
The announcement was made five hours before the scheduled kickoff in the northern English city of Manchester, with City citing safety concerns due to "extreme and escalating weather conditions".
It was one of only four scheduled Premier League games this weekend in the competition’s first split winter break. Sheffield United were still due to host Bournemouth on Sunday.
The storm impacted the Women’s Super League with postponements including Sunday’s high-profile clash at Goodison Park for the Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool.
Storm Ciara, named by the Met Office national weather agency, was expected to bring winds up to 90mph (129kph) as well as heavy rains. The British agency has issued 22 emergency flood warnings and 149 flood watch alerts.
The storm has led to footballgames in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands also being postponed.
German title challengers Borussia Monchengladbach said Sunday’s game against Cologne would likely not be affected but that fans could face a dangerous journey home.
There was no word of the storm affecting Sunday’s other Bundesliga game between league leaders Bayern Munich and Leipzig.
All four of Sunday’s scheduled league games in the Netherlands were called off, including Ajax’s visit to Utrecht, along with amateur games at all levels. Three games in the Belgian league were also postponed.
The women's Six Nations clash between Scotland and England was also postponed.
Saturday's Calcutta Cup clash between Scotland and England's men in Edinburgh had been marred by terrible conditions as England ran out 13-6 winners.
