The governing body is set to introduce a half-time show on the pitch for the first time in history
Fifa is planning to increase the half-time break in Sunday’s World Cup final to 20 minutes in order to stage a half-time show, which would be the first in the tournament’s history.
World football governing body has previously confirmed that the performance itself will run for 11 minutes, but has not announced the total duration of the entire break. Multiple sources have said Fifa’s aim is to keep the interval to around 20 minutes, but no more than that.
According to the laws of the game set out by the International Football Association Board (Ifab), half-time should not exceed 15 minutes, except in exceptional circumstances and “only with the referee’s permission”.
Five extra minutes to the break would be unfamiliar to the players and coaching staff, and longer or shorter rest periods can affect how a team emerge for the second half.
There was also half-time entertainment introduced by Fifa at last summer’s Club World Cup final, also held at MetLife Stadium, but that happened on a stage built high in the stands. This time, the performance will take place on the pitch. That means the stage will have to be assembled after the first half and removed before play can continue.
Extended half-time breaks have featured in other major sporting events. At the 2024 Copa America final, Shakira performed at Hard Rock Stadium before Argentina and Colombia started the second half after a break of around 26 minutes.
The NFL’s Super Bowl also pauses for between 20 and 30 minutes for its half-time show, despite regular-season games having a fixed 13-minute break.
