BERN, Switzerland (AP) — The soccer league in FIFA’s home country Switzerland is not interested in World Cup -style mandatory drinks breaks splitting games into four quarters.
The Swiss Football League said Wednesday “hydration breaks” are not planned in its games next season. It starts July 25 with two 6 p.m. kickoffs, then games at 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. the next day.
Switzerland has sweltered in the European heat wave during the World Cup with some evening temperatures around 35 Celsius (95 Fahrenheit).
FIFA ordered three-minute breaks midway through each half of all 104 World Cup games to let players hydrate, regardless of the temperature or if the stadium is cooled under a roof.
Critics of “hydration breaks” say the stoppages disrupt the natural flow of games and are designed, as well as to protect players’ health, to give broadcasters who paid FIFA a collective billions of dollars for World Cup rights time to sell more advertising.
The Swiss league joins European soccer body UEFA in stating they will continue to apply drinks breaks only “when temperatures justify it” after a pre-game agreement with teams.
The first high-profile drinks breaks in soccer involved Lionel Messi at the 2008 Olympics. The men’s final kicked off at midday in Beijing and play stopped for less than two minutes in each half during Argentina’s 1-0 win over Nigeria.
FIFA enforced cooling breaks also required by a Brazilian labor court at some games during the 2014 World Cup.
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