By Julien Pretot and Fernando Kallas
NEW YORK, July 17 (Reuters) – The halftime interval in Sunday’s World Cup final between Spain and Argentina is set to last more than 15 minutes because of the installation required for the tournament’s first halftime entertainment show, broadcasting sources said on Friday.
The installation of the stage for the 11-minute show is expected to take around seven minutes, the sources said, one adding it would ‘probably’ take as long to dismantle the equipment and clear the pitch before the second half could begin.
FIFA’s World Cup regulations state that matches are played in accordance with the Laws of the Game set by the International Football Association Board (IFAB), which say players are entitled to a halftime interval “not exceeding 15 minutes”.
The tournament regulations themselves, however, say players are entitled to a “15-minute interval” at halftime, without repeating the IFAB wording that the break cannot exceed that duration.
FIFA did not immediately respond to a request for clarification on how long the halftime interval would last or how the planned show would comply with the regulations.
The performance will be the first halftime show staged at a World Cup final, adding another element associated with major American sporting events to a tournament already featuring mandatory hydration breaks and, for the first time, championship rings for the winners.
(Reporting by Julien Pretot and Fernando KallasEditing by Toby Davis)
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