England head coach Thomas Tuchel is not a fan of the controversial hydration breaks at the ongoing World Cup in North America, Yankee Scores reports.
The 52-year-old made the admission when speaking ahead of England’s second Group L game against Ghana in Boston on Tuesday.
Play was halted in the first half of England’s opening game against Croatia in Dallas and the customary jeering of the breaks began – despite the match being played under a roof in an air-conditioned arena.
The breaks will still be used in Boston no matter the weather but Tuchel voiced his concerns over them and the effect they are having on matches.
“It interrupts and changes the identity of the football match”
Thomas Tuchel shares his thoughts on the hydration breaks taking place at the World Cup 🥵 pic.twitter.com/fRxKCh23SV
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) June 23, 2026
“Four Quarters Football”
“I think that it interrupts and changes the identity of a football match much more than I thought. I had hydration breaks before when it was really, really hot and needed, but they were shorter,” Tuchel said.
“They were shorter and they were just in a few matches. In the interests of fairness here, it is now done in every match for every team.
“It breaks the match almost in four quarters. And I think it changes the characteristic of the match more than I thought.”
Tuchel added: “I like it as a coach, of course, because it is good to have influence and have my team together.
“Overall, though, I think I like football more when it’s played in one go in one half because it builds a momentum. It’s part of the game.
“It’s hard to build momentum, and it’s hard to keep the momentum, when there are breaks.
“If you do not have a break, then it’s just like the battle on the field between the players and the teams. It plays out in a longer period of time. It just adds to the character of the beautiful game.”
His criticism comes after Marcelo Bielsa said the breaks add nothing and take away a lot.
