UEFA and LFP not planning to adopt World Cup cooling breaks | OneFootball

UEFA and France’s LFP are not planning to adopt the blanket cooling breaks used at the World Cup.

According to L'Équipe, FIFA has introduced mid-half pauses across matches in the United States, Canada and Mexico so players can drink. Each lasts three minutes, even in reasonable conditions, and the policy also opens extra advertising windows for broadcasters paying a record $4.2 billion.

IFAB has permitted such stoppages since 2014, but UEFA will stick to regulations that allow them only when heat thresholds are met. A delegate assesses conditions after the warm-up and, if WBGT readings exceed 28C, 30C for youth competitions, or 32C WBGT, 35C for senior events, breaks are imposed under Law 7. Any other drinks pause below those levels remains at the referee’s discretion.

Authorised stoppages run between 1 minute 30 and 3 minutes. No extension of this emergency procedure has been discussed for club or national team tournaments, and there is no move to chase extra broadcaster revenue.

In France, Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 have used cooling breaks for about a decade only in extreme cases, under IFAB’s laws. Decisions are taken on the day in consultation with the referee and match delegate.

The LFP does not plan to stretch the practice for financial gain, noting FIFA’s rationale is tied to very high temperatures that France’s more temperate climate does not typically produce.

Source: L'Équipe