Heat hangs over Lucerne as fans watch Switzerland World Cup win
NPR reported humid heat in Lucerne as fans watched Switzerland beat Bosnia-Herzegovina, linking the scene to climate pressure in the Alps.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
2 min read
Lucerne’s lakeside World Cup gathering unfolded in heat that NPR correspondent Rob Schmitz described as unusually humid for the Swiss city. His report linked the scene to wider climate concerns in Switzerland, where a glaciologist previously told NPR that temperature extremes are becoming more common and glaciers are retreating quickly.
Schmitz reported from Lucerne late last week, describing a city that still had its familiar Alpine backdrop: the white-capped mountains, Lake Lucerne and a waterfront crowded with people. The weather, he said, felt far removed from the cool mountain air he had expected from earlier reporting trips to Switzerland.
Along the waterfront, according to NPR, soccer fans wearing Switzerland’s red and white gathered around large outdoor screens. They were watching a FIFA World Cup match between Switzerland and Bosnia-Herzegovina that was being played in the United States.
Schmitz reported that the crowd erupted whenever Switzerland scored. By the end of the evening, he said, Switzerland had won the match.
The heat shaped the dispatch as much as the game did. Schmitz described the air in Lucerne as hot and heavy with humidity, comparing the feel of the Swiss city that evening to a tropical climate rather than an Alpine one.
NPR framed the moment against Schmitz’s earlier reporting on Switzerland’s glaciers. A year before the Lucerne dispatch, he reported from the Rhône Glacier with a Swiss glaciologist, who said the country was especially exposed to a changing climate.
That glaciologist told NPR that temperature extremes in Switzerland are becoming more frequent. He also said the country’s glaciers are among the fastest receding in the world.
The Lucerne scene brought together two parts of Switzerland’s public life that Schmitz highlighted in his report: national celebration around soccer and mounting concern over heat in a country closely associated with mountains, snow and glaciers. NPR’s dispatch ended by contrasting the national team’s victory with the country’s continuing struggle against warming temperatures.
This story draws on original reporting from NPR.