The ‘hydration breaks’ FIFA introduced for the 2026 World Cup have been more controversial than any refereeing decision or selection dilemma so far this summer.
The three-minute pauses punctuate every match across the United States, Canada and Mexico and have been roundly booed by fans of nearly every team taking part.
Seen as a way of smuggling in extra commercial breaks, the pauses have had a material impact on the momentum of matches and, while some coaches say they like having the opportunity to brief their team mid-match, are almost universally derided as a naked money-making scheme for FIFA.
Recent research suggested that the extra six minutes of advertising time allows Fox, the tournament’s broadcaster in the US, to generate anywhere between $250m to $600m in extra advertising revenue.
On top of that, FIFA has been able to offer primary commercial partners in Coca-Cola, whose Powerade brand sponsors the hydration breaks themselves, more value in their deal worth an estimated $100m annually.
Gianni Infantino, FIFA’s controversial president and Donald Trump ally-cum-sycophant, however, says that there is no financial benefit to the hydration breaks for his organisation.
Speaking in a rare media appearance, he said: “Broadcasters, maybe, they generate more. I don’t know. That’s great for them. But for us, we make zero additional revenues.” Later, he issued a statement.
“The main reason is the heat,” it read. “But we also have to understand that in a competition like the World Cup, played over 39 days, with teams potentially playing eight matches in those 39 days, having a moment to rest is extremely important.
“What matters even more to us is ensuring that all teams, in every match, are playing under the same conditions. And it’s very difficult to accept that a coach might have the opportunity to influence a match by making adjustments simply because it’s hotter, while in another match, where the temperature is slightly lower, the same coach doesn’t have the same opportunity. We want to ensure equal conditions for everyone, and that’s why these breaks are implemented in every match.”
But speaking exclusively to HITC, Professor Kieran Maguire, a soccer finance lecturer at University of Liverpool in the UK, said “Infantino’s statement is an insult.
“Last week, there was a fourth official telling the referee he couldn’t resume the match because Fox hadn’t finished their commercials. FIFA take everyone for fools.
“If they said it was a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make as much revenue as possible, people wouldn’t like it but at least it would be honest.
“This is a broader indication of shifting sands and the dealing from the bottom of the deck that we see in both politics and sports.”
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