Overview
- Every match will feature two three-minute hydration breaks, one in each half, applied uniformly across all 104 games as a player-welfare measure.
- Broadcasters must wait at least 20 seconds after the whistle to start commercials and return to live coverage at least 30 seconds before play resumes, creating roughly a 2:10 ad window.
- Split-screen ads during the breaks are limited to official FIFA sponsors, while full cutaways may carry commercials from any advertiser.
- Networks are not required to run ads and can stay with the match feed or switch to studio analysis, with major rights-holders such as ITV yet to confirm their approach.
- The move follows recent experiments with split-screen ads in events like the Six Nations that drew viewer criticism, setting up a test of fan tolerance when the tournament begins June 11 across the United States, Canada and Mexico.