When USA-Paraguay stopped in the 24th minute for the first hydration break, the Fox announcer proclaimed: “And here ends the first quarter.” There also begins to crystallize the terminology of the new football that is brewing in this World Cup. Only 24 degrees and 68% humidity were recorded in Los Angeles, but the voracity of FIFA has established what former soccer player Alexi Lalas already joked about with some sarcasm in the opening match: “Mexico 1 – South Africa 0 at the end of the first quarter,” he wrote on the social network
I wasn’t the only one. Discontent spread. From the US coach, Pochettino (“I don’t like them; I only like them if the conditions are extreme”), to the fans, also irritated by the new advertising spaces during breaks, which hindered the broadcasts. When the announcements ended in the first cut of Mexico-South Africa and the images of the stadium were resumed, in which the temperature did not exceed 26 degrees, the ball was already in play.
FIFA decided to introduce a controversial modification in this World Cup that some television operators had been demanding for decades. Until now, hydration breaks were conditioned to certain temperature and humidity thresholds set by each competition to protect the health of the footballers. This time FIFA eliminated the thresholds and decreed that they were mandatory in all matches “for the well-being of the players.”
The way he chose to announce it was very significant. He did so in a meeting with international television operators who own the rights. In public, he spoke about the health of the footballers, while discreetly distributing a guide on how they could use the new breaks as windows for advertising exploitation.
They gave two options: cut the broadcast and release advertisements or keep the field signal and include commercial messages about it.
he chose to cut and go into advertising. But in the opening match the synchronization between the referee and the television broadcast did not work and US viewers missed several seconds of the game after the breaks.
Telemundo, owner of the rights in Spanish, tried to take advantage of the discontent: “We DO NOT cut to advertising during the hydration break. Come to Telemundo for soccer without interruptions,” wrote Alejandro Berry, one of its best-known faces, on X.
Fox’s cuts have been better synchronized in recent games, although the rigidity of commercial commitments has left disconcerting images of footballers standing on the field waiting for the television stations to finish their business before playing again. In environmental conditions that are not extreme, such as in the sophisticated stadium in Los Angeles, or in Atlanta, also covered, the players do not even need that much time to drink.
The introduction of the four quarters has also paved the way for new habits in stadiums. Queues at toilets and drink stands dot the bleachers with empty seats during hydration breaks, too short for these procedures.
