An $8 Million Sip: FIFA’s Use Of Hydration Breaks In The World Cup

Co-authored by Gowling WLG summer law student Jordan Sweeney.
 

The 2026 FIFA World Cup, co-hosted across the United States, Canada, and Mexico, introduced mandatory three-minute hydration breaks midway through each half of all 104 matches, regardless of temperature or venue conditions. While FIFA has framed the policy as a player-welfare measure designed to combat extreme heat in the North American summer conditions, the breaks have simultaneously created an estimated $250 million in new advertising revenue for the U.S. broadcaster Fox Sports, including eight million dollars for thirty seconds of ad space during the final game.¹ The hydration breaks have drawn backlash from fans, players, and coaches as they feel the breaks have altered the rhythm of the sport. The implementation of hydration breaks illustrates a broader tension, namely, whether one of the last remaining uninterrupted sports can survive the commercial pressures of an expanding tournament format.

Historical precedent

The introduction of hydration breaks is not an entirely new concept. The 2014 World Cup in Brazil saw the first implementation of cooling breaks in tournament history during the Round of 16 match between the Netherlands and Mexico, where the breaks were used because of extreme heat. In subsequent tournaments and international friendlies, discretionary breaks based on weather conditions were used. Furthermore, the breaks were used discretionarily during the 2022 Qatar World Cup where the temperature reached 32 degrees Celsius. However, the distinction between the 2026 World Cup is that the hydration breaks are mandatory and universally implemented, regardless of weather conditions.

The Wall Street Journal, BBC, and other news outlets have reported that Fox Sports will generate roughly 250 million dollars in ad revenue during the World Cup. According to some estimates, the average cost of a 30-second spot during the World Cup ranges from $250,000 to $750,000 depending on the match’s participants and the stage of the tournament. With two breaks per match, that yields eight available commercial slots per game across the 104-match tournament, totalling 832 potential in-game advertisements.

At a conservative average of $300,000 per 30-second spot, Fox’s total hydration break advertising revenue reaches approximately $249.6 million. If the average climbs to $400,000, the total rises to $332.8 million, and some estimates suggest that knockout-round rates could push the total to as high as $500 million. This sum represents more than half of what Fox reportedly paid for the broadcast rights to the entire tournament.

A prominent reason why hydration break ad slots are commercially valuable is that they produce a more captive audience than halftime advertisements. During a three-minute stoppage, viewers are unlikely to leave their screens, change the channel, or disengage in the way they might during a 15-minute halftime interval. This creates a premium advertising environment that had never existed in soccer broadcasting, creating the kind of inventory American sports advertisers are accustomed to purchasing in other major leagues such as the NFL, NBA, and MLB.

Divergent broadcasting approaches

Fox Sports in the United States has embraced the breaks aggressively, cutting away to full-screen commercials with sponsored graphics built specifically around the pause. During the opening match between Mexico and South Africa, Fox's commercials ran beyond the allocated hydration-break window and into the restart of play, causing fans to miss live action. FIFA accepted Fox's explanation and chose not to punish the network.

Conversely, Telemundo, broadcasting to Spanish-speaking audiences in the United States, has avoided full commercial cutaways during hydration breaks, instead keeping coverage focused on fans, stadium atmosphere, and player interactions. The BBC, a non-commercial public broadcaster, has simply stayed with the match feed, keeping cameras on the players and coaching interactions. These contrasting approaches highlight that the commercial exploitation of the breaks is primarily a function of the broadcaster's market and regulatory environment rather than an inherent feature of the rule itself.

FIFA’s financial position: The indirect benefit

While FIFA has maintained that the federation earns “no additional revenue” from hydration breaks, since “all commercial agreements were signed in advance” of the policy’s announcement, FIFA benefits in two indirect ways.² The first and most significant benefit is the strengthening of FIFA's position in future media-rights negotiations. As one BBC Sport analysis noted, "When FIFA goes into rights negotiations next time, they can say their product is worth more, because broadcasters can sell sponsorship in these hydration breaks, have more advertising, and there is the increased amount of matches, so they can charge every broadcaster in every country more money.”³

The second indirect benefit relates to FIFA’s sponsorship ecosystem. FIFA agreed that Coca-Cola’s energy drink brand, Powerade, will be the official sponsor of the hydration breaks. Powerade branding is prominently displayed on videoboard ribbons around stadiums during the breaks, and in some venues, stadium announcements originally promoted the breaks as “powered by Powerade.” Coca-Cola is a long-standing FIFA sponsor with a current contract running through 2030. The creation of a branded, in-stadium moment around the hydration breaks delivers tangible sponsorship activation value to Coca-Cola that would not exist without the mandated stoppages.

A major concern from participants is that hydration breaks disrupt a team’s momentum and provides a “scheduled timeout” that coaches can exploit for reorganization. For example, during the group stage, former England striker Alan Shearer criticized the hydration breaks for allowing Germany to adjust its tactics against Curaçao. Prior to the hydration break, Curaçao had equalized the game against the four-time champions, only for the break to occur 30-seconds later. Shearer stated, “I actually felt sorry for them,” and “They scored and then it was maybe 30 seconds after that it stopped. So, it killed all their momentum.”⁴

Coaches have openly acknowledged using the breaks as tactical huddles. Roberto Martinez, Portugal men’s coach, stated, “In technical terms this changes how we work, we’re talking about three minutes where we can make adjustments.”⁵ Further, Switzerland’s head coach, Murat Yakin, stated in his press conference stated after their match against Bosnia that “After the second hydration break, we would change a few things, because then the opponent can’t react immediately.”⁶ The dual use of the breaks, as both a hydration opportunity and tactical timeout, has led commentators to argue that FIFA has unintentionally introduced a feature that advantages well-resourced teams and sophisticated coaching staffs, while simultaneously disadvantaged smaller nations that rely more on sustained effort, emotion, and momentum to compete with favoured opponents.

Conclusion

Looking forward, the overwhelming commercial incentive created by the breaks makes their elimination unlikely. The 2030 World Cup's hosting geography provides a ready-made justification based on the heat, and FIFA president, Infantino, has already signaled openness to making the breaks permanent.⁷ The 2026 tournament has thus functioned as a testing ground for the future of soccer advertising, testing whether the sport's global audience will accept American-style in-game commercial interruptions. The early evidence suggests that while fans and purists resist, the financial returns are too substantial for the innovation to be reversed without a dramatic shift in institutional priorities.

Footnotes

1. "How Much Money Is Fox Making from the World Cup Hydration Breaks?" (2026), online: Yahoo Sports.

2. "Infantino Says World Cup Hydration Breaks Purely Sporting, Not Commercial" (June 24, 2026), online: Reuters.

3. Daniel Austin, "World Cup Hydration Breaks: Ads Worth $250m in USA Alone, So Are They Here to Stay?" (June, 19 2026), online: BBC Sport.

4. Sebastian Stafford-Bloor, "Germany Begin World Cup with Crushing Win. But Did Curacao Fall Foul of the Hydration Break?" (June 14, 2026), online: The Athletic.

5. Liam Tharme, "World Cup 'Hydration Breaks' Have Changed How Soccer Is Played" (June 29, 2026), online: The Athletic.

6. Ibid.

7. Dan Bilicki, "Did FIFA Just Make a Change to Controversial World Cup Hydration Breaks?" (June 26, 2026), online: Toronto Sun.

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