Manchester derby in China cancelled due to bad weather

Manchester United said Monday that its pre-season friendly with Manchester City in Beijing has been cancelled after torrential rains soaked the turf at the Bird’s Nest Stadium venue.

“Due to recent weather events, tournament organisers and participating clubs have decided to cancel tonight’s International Champions Cup game,” scheduled for Monday, Manchester United said in a statement.

The International Champions Cup is a pre-season series of friendly exhibition association tournaments and was hosted in China for the first time in 2015.

Flooding is not uncommon during the summer monsoon season in northern China, but rains have been unusually heavy across the country this summer.

Rainstorms lashed the region this week, driving over 300,000 people from their homes and leaving hundreds of thousands more trapped as waters rose.

More than 200 people have been left dead or missing in the neighbouring province of Hebei.