Hot topic for fans
The World Cup will come to a close this weekend with two of the highest seeded teams facing other in the final at New York-New Jersey Stadium. Amid the controversies over refereeing decisions and red cards, one of the big talking points of the competition has been the hydration breaks added to games by FIFA to help players deal with the heat.
But the pauses – which have been booed by some fans – could be undermining trust in the science surrounding heat safety. Researcher Harry Brown, who explores the effect of heat on health and performance, claims FIFA’s approach “risks turning a sound idea into a poor example”.
He highlighted the fact the breaks happened no matter what the conditions and that there have been complaints about players spending the time being given tactics while standing in the sun, instead of using active cooling methods.
Writing on the website Nature, he said: “Cooling breaks can work. The science is strong. But they must be executed properly. Put simply: cooling breaks should be driven by heat-stress risk and designed around effective cooling, not broadcast schedules or commercial pressures.”
He added: “This isn’t just a problem for sport. It’s an issue for human health. The same principles apply to construction workers on a hot building site or agricultural workers in a field. Across these settings, the evidence is consistent: structured interventions that combine rest, hydration and active cooling reduce physiological strain and protect health. When they’re poorly designed or inconsistently applied, the benefits might not be felt.”
