Rainout (sports)

Rainout (sports)

Rainout, washout, rain delay, and rain stopped play are terms regarding an outdoor event, generally a sporting event, delayed or canceled due to rain, or the threat of rain. It is not to be confused with a type of out in baseball, though a baseball game can be rained out. Delays due to other forms of weather are named "snow delay", "lightning delay", "thunderstorm delay", or "fog delay", while there are many other effects of weather on sport. Also, a night game can be delayed if the floodlight system fails.

Sports typically stopped due to the onset of rain include golf, tennis, and cricket, where even slightly damp conditions seriously affect playing quality and the players' safety. In the case of tennis, several venues (such as those of Wimbledon and the Australian Open) have built retractable roofs atop of their existing courts and stadiums in the last decade to avert rain delays that could push a tournament further than the final date.

Association football generally plays on through rain, although matches can be abandoned if the pitch becomes severely waterlogged or there is lightning in the area, with the latter case being more for the protection of spectators within the metal stands surrounding stadiums. In NCAA play, should lightning be detected by any pitch official, a minimum 30-minute delay and a potential "rainout" can be declared if the lightning continues for a considerable amount of time under the NCAA's all-sports policy regarding lightning.

In North America, the only one of the four major sports to stop play due to rain is baseball. Football plays through all types of weather except lightning and hurricanes (the former being more in concern to the safety of the fans sitting upon metal grandstand seating than the players), while basketball and hockey usually play indoors (with some exceptions such as the Winter Classic), although those sports have seen event cancellations or delays due to moisture on a basketball court making safe play impossible, or a malfunction in the rink ice system of an arena causing indoor fog, along with external factors such as snowstorms or flooding preventing safe access to venues. There have also been stoppages in auto racing events like the Indianapolis 500 due to rain.

If there is severe rain during a match, it can become a point of controversy whether a match should be abandoned. A notable example of this was on the final day of the Serie A 1999-00 season, when Juventus had to play out a match against Perugia despite the pitch appearing to be unplayable. Juventus lost the match 1-0 and consequently lost the Scudetto to Lazio.