Fox ad break delays restart in Mexico vs South Africa World Cup opener | OneFootball

The World Cup opener between Mexico and South Africa in Mexico City was briefly held up when the restart after a cooling break was delayed until Fox finished a commercial block.

Soon after Mexico’s second goal, South Africa were set to kick off when Brazilian referee Wilton Sampaio told them to wait because the US broadcaster’s adverts were still on air. According to The Athletic, the hold-up lasted about 40 seconds.

Cooling breaks are among several widely discussed additions at this World Cup in North America, scheduled midway through each half.

Broadcasters have earmarked those pauses as valuable in-game slots for adverts, a strategy that, in this instance, directly affected the match restart.

Hugo Broos’s Bafana Bafana eventually resumed play, and the match ended 2-0 to Mexico.

Source: L'Équipe