FIFA would have been ‘wasting the moment’ if it had not extended the World Cup final interval on Sunday to put on a half-time show, a top global events boss has claimed.
FIFA has said the show, featuring artists such as Madonna, Shakira and Justin Bieber, will last 11 minutes at MetLife Stadium on Sunday – but it has been reported the show means the gap between the first and second half will be well in excess of the 15 minutes set down in the sport’s laws.
That, perhaps understandably, has led to much criticism from the sport’s purists, as FIFA makes yet another big change at this summer’s tournament, in the wake of the expansion to 48 teams and the much-maligned ‘hydration breaks’.
Amid the fury, though, Michael Gietzen – chief executive officer of Identity – told the Press Association that FIFA is ‘right’ to extend half-time.
‘The people complaining are missing the point,’ he claims. ‘Football has its own rhythm and its own rules and of course that matters. But a World Cup final isn’t “most of the time”.
‘It happens once every four years, in front of the biggest audience any single sporting event can pull. Treating it like a normal weekend fixture is the mistake, not the half-time show.
Shakira is one of the headliners for FIFA’s controversial halftime show at MetLife on Sunday
Gianni Infantino has riled purists with his expanded 48-team tournament and hydration breaks
‘A good half-time show isn’t a distraction from the football. It’s part of the reason people remember exactly where they were when they watched it.
‘A few extra minutes to get that right isn’t a compromise, it’s FIFA recognizing that the final is a cultural event as much as a sporting one.
‘Purists may call that a dilution. I’d call it FIFA catching up to what a decent proportion of audiences have wanted for years. A final like this comes round once every four years. Play it safe and you waste the moment.’
There is concern from some football analysts that the lengthy break in play – similar to that of the Super Bowl – will dilute the match itself and ruin the flow of the game, while players will also have to deal with the unusually-long physical break.
Last year’s Club World Cup – in the same stadium in New Jersey – saw a 25-minute break for the halftime show, which did not use staging on the pitch itself.
FIFA’s extravaganza this weekend will use the playing surface, and The Times reports that it is likely the break could exceed 30 minutes – double what is allowed in the rules of the game.
Justin Bieber is also on the star-studded line-up for the extended show at halftime on Sunday
Last year’s Club World Cup break was 25 minutes, but the halftime show didn’t use the pitch
Trump – like at the Club World Cup – is expected to help present the trophy to the winning team
Under Law 7 of the IFAB Laws of the Game, the half time break must not exceed 15 minutes.
It is just the latest controversy to affect the tournament, with Gianni Infantino previously coming under huge scrutiny for suspending the ban of USA star Folarin Balogun until after the tournament.
The U-turn on his red card came after a personal phone call from president Donald Trump, but Infantino maintains the decision was made by an independent panel and that he had no involvement.
Trump is expected to attend Sunday’s final, where he will also present the trophy to the winning team, as he did with Chelsea in last year’s Club World Cup.
