Overview
- FIFA staged the first-ever World Cup final halftime show on Sunday at MetLife Stadium, curated by Coldplay’s Chris Martin and featuring Madonna, Shakira with Burna Boy, Justin Bieber, BTS, Gustavo Dudamel, the PS22 Chorus, The Muppets and surprise cameos from Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Jason Sudeikis as Ted Lasso.
- The interval lasted roughly 27 minutes from whistle to whistle, well above the 15-minute limit in IFAB’s guidance, and that extended pause became the central focus of criticism from broadcasters, pundits and fans.
- Organizers said the performance was produced with Global Citizen to benefit the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund, with Live Nation and Done + Dusted among production partners and broadcasters completing a global transmission of the show.
- Reactions split sharply, with some viewers praising the spectacle and surprise guests while others — including BBC pundit Wayne Rooney — condemned the disruption to player routines and the traditional flow of the final.
- The controversy over timing and scale is likely to prompt questions for FIFA and IFAB about whether and how halftime entertainment should be limited in future finals and what changes, if any, will be required to protect match integrity.