'Brutal, searing and punishing heat' – Babb on playing for Ireland at USA '94
The 1994 World Cup in America was very tough for the football players because of the weather. None of the UK teams like England made it to the big tournament, but the Republic of Ireland did qualify. Irish player Phil Babb has opened up about his experience playing in those games. He said the weather was terribly hot and painful. He described the heat as brutal and punishing. The players had to run for ninety minutes in extreme heat that made it hard to breathe. Even though it was a happy time for the fans, the players struggled on the pitch. Babb remembers it as one of the hardest challenges of his career because the hot sun never stopped shining on them.