POST their game against Japan, Netherlands' Virgil van Dijk spent a considerable amount of time on FIFA's mandatory hydration breaks at the World Cup. "I think hydration breaks are really interesting," he said after his team drew 2-2 against Japan in a pulsating encounter at Dallas. "I was obviously watching almost all of the games up until today. I think every time going to commercials is a bit, not really something that I like. I think for the neutral watchers on TV it is also not great. So if it is really hot it would be good to put them in but I think you have to look at it in every game, separately, in my opinion. But I think I have said enough already on that."
In the process, he became one of the first footballers at the World Cup to call out what those breaks have become. An opportunity for extra commerce. Obviously, football has had water breaks before. During the peak of Covid when games were played in the summer months in England, the officials had water breaks. There were water breaks when the World Cup was being played in the humidity of Brazil in 2014. But those breaks weren't mandated by any federation. The broadcast didn't cut to ads and there wasn't any discernible change in terms of momentum. It was fairly incidental; players, the fans in the stands as well as the ones watching on TV didn't even realise it.
At the World Cup in the US, Mexico and Canada, that's not the case. Hydration breaks have become a separate entity in itself and it's threatening to ruin the identity of the sport; changing its nature from two halves of 45 minutes to four quarters of 22 minutes and 30 seconds each.
These breaks have seen teams losing momentum and completely ceding the initiative to their opponents after resumption in play. It's why Emma Hayes, the US women's team coach, at the World Cup as a pundit, doesn't like it at all. "When you're on top, you don't want it; when you're losing, you do," she said during a broadcast. "Sometimes it's not even coaching [during the hydration break]. It's about taking on fluid and calming players. Sometimes it can be doing nothing, but that can be considered coaching as well.
"It's a shame. I can understand it in really warm parts of the country, but it seems like it could be something that could be here for good."
That's the thing. Some of the venues in the US have climate controlled venues with full air-con as well as retractable roofs. So it's not like there has been oppressive heat at all venues; some of the places have seen temperatures drop to as low as 22*c during games but the hydration breaks have remained in place. On a few occasions, players have not even deemed it necessary to take fluids on boards per a few journalists who have been covering games.
US coach Mauricio Pochettino is also another stakeholder who's not a fan. "I don't like it," he said. "I only like it when the conditions are extreme. But when the conditions are good, it is unnecessary."
In a fair few games, the breaks have clearly changed the complexion of the game. Morocco, who were dominating Brazil before the first break in the first half, lost control and allowed Vinicius Jnr to equalise. Canada, missing a number of chances to restore parity against Bosnia, found the back of the net through Cyril Larin, after the pause in the second half. Scotland, heavily favoured in their game against Haiti, found the net to calm the nerves after the stoppage.
Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti clearly liked that because he used the stoppage to get some instructions on board. "You can explain a problem to the players," he said when asked about the benefits. "You can make a tactical adjustment that can be very good." Maybe prevent coaches from giving instructions to the players during these artificial pauses in play?
Just like Van Dijk, Ian Wright, former England forward, suggested that these stoppages are 'another way getting adverts into it from an American point of view'. And, invariably, there were some overlaps when the US broadcaster didn't cut back to live action during the game between Mexico and South Korea.
While hydration breaks will remain for the duration of the tournament, it remains to be seen if leagues also adopt this mechanism going forward. If they do, football as the world knows it will change. And it won't be for the betterment of the sport.
