World Cup 2026: FIFA ‘hydration breaks’ are about more than just player welfare

With the World Cup coming to the United States in the summer of 2026, players will be allowed hydration breaks during the game.

The breaks will see each half split up during the 2026 World Cup matches, and a report from The Athletic claims that the broadcasters will be allowed to cut away to advertisements during that time. FIFA has decided to introduce a three-minute break midway through each half during the World Cup to promote player welfare.

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FIFA introduces hydration breaks in World Cup 2026

Due to the heat in the United States during the summer, hydration breaks will be provided at all games.

As far as advertisements are concerned, FIFA have laid down some ground rules. Broadcasters have been informed that the ad breaks will not start within 20 seconds of the referee calling for a hydration break. The feed will also have to return to the match more than 30 seconds before play resumes.

Furthermore, broadcasters are under no obligation to display advertisements during the breaks. They could broadcast footage from studios and analyse the game as well.

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Sports in the United States have been highly commercialised, and such a move from FIFA will be very popular with companies sponsoring the tournament. It will help FIFA rake in hundreds of millions of dollars during the World Cup.

“If you are FIFA, and you are going to have these breaks, you are doing simple math: is it more profitable for us to sell this at a premium to a (commercial) partner? Or is it more profitable to give it back to the broadcasters? And in this case, it’s a no-brainer,” Ricardo Fort, a longtime sports sponsorship executive, formerly at Coca-Cola and Visa, told The Athletic.

“The broadcasters will make a lot more money, and will pay a lot more money, for a break like that.”

Meanwhile, the hydration breaks should contribute to player welfare and give them some respite in high temperatures during the World Cup.

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