Infantino defends hydration breaks and hints Fifa could make them permanent despite fan jeers

Fifa is considering making hydration breaks a permanent fixture at future World Cups, with president Gianni Infantino defending the stoppages despite widespread booing from fans inside stadiums across the United States.

The breaks, which occur midway through each half at approximately the 22-minute mark, have drawn loud jeers at venues including Atlanta — a stadium equipped with a roof and air conditioning — where the heat justification carries less weight. Critics have also accused Fifa of using the pauses as a covert mechanism to insert advertising in the manner of American sports timeouts, a charge Infantino flatly rejected.

“Maybe the coach can reassess certain situations, correct certain mistakes. The players get a little rest and come back in full speed. Well, is that bad necessarily? Maybe it’s good,” Infantino said. He added that the tournament’s high intensity — with matches remaining competitive until the final whistle — could partly be attributed to the additional recovery time the breaks afford players.

Infantino also addressed the commercial angle directly, insisting that all broadcasting and advertising contracts were agreed before the decision to introduce universal hydration breaks was made, meaning Fifa derived no additional revenue from the stoppages themselves.

On the question of consistency, Infantino argued that applying breaks selectively — only in matches played in extreme heat — would create an unfair tactical imbalance between teams. “If we were to use hydration breaks only in those matches where it was too hot and not in the other matches, we would give an advantage or a disadvantage to some of the coaches or some of the teams,” he explained.

Fifa has not yet committed to retaining the breaks, with Infantino indicating the governing body will analyse the experience of this tournament before deciding on their future. The 2026 World Cup has otherwise delivered record goal tallies and standout performances from Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, and Erling Haaland, lending the broader event high entertainment value even as the breaks themselves remain a flashpoint.