The 2026 World Cup is underway, and Thursday’s opening games gave viewers a flavour as to what the viewing experience of this most unusual of tournaments will feel like.

FIFA have introduced a litany of rule changes to this World Cup, with sweeping alterations to the powers afforded to VAR and time-wasting protocols, among others.

Most controversial, though, has been the mandate for three-minute “hydration breaks” at every single one of the 104 games.

Mid-half water breaks were utilised at many games of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, but were planned as brief stoppages to prevent disruption to the game as much as possible.

By contrast, FIFA have decided to make them a permanent fixture for this edition, and have stepped things up to allow broadcasters to cut to ad breaks during these stoppages.

It’s a move which appears inspired by the sports of one of the host countries, with viewers of US sports well familiar with the unending cuts to commercial breaks.

However, Irish viewers were left stunned when even RTÉ cut to an ad break during the first-half hydration break of the first game between Mexico and South Africa.

Unlike some broadcasters elsewhere in the world who cut to split-screen ads, RTÉ instead chose to cut away from the action altogether for a full-length ad break.

It was not just the viewers who were amazed by the decision, with RTÉ pundit Richie Sadlier ripping into it in a remarkable on-air rant at half-time.

Richie Sadlier rips into RTÉ World Cup broadcast

At half-time of the opening game of the 2026 World Cup, most viewers would have been focused on the woeful display put in by South Africa against the hosts in Mexico City.

Richie Sadlier, though, was more appalled by RTÉ’s decision to utilise the first-half hydration break to show a quick stint of advertisements.

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On punditry duty, Sadlier opened the half-time analysis by veering away from host Joanne Cantwell’s question and slating what he saw as a symbol of the commercialisation of football.

When asked by Cantwell what he would pick out from the first half, Sadlier said:

I think disappointed in South Africa given the build-up we gave them, but it’s a strong start from Mexico. They’re in the lead, they should be ahead by more than one goal. Unless there’s big changes in that half-time dressing room for South Africa, it’s a win here for Mexico.

But I can’t let the moment go without noting that this is my first experience watching a game of football that’s been broken in the first-half by advertisement breaks.

I understand there’s a water break, I know that’s a decision taken externally, but ads during a match is wrong. It just is.

There was an awkward moment of silence after Sadlier’s unexpected rant, with Cantwell and fellow pundits Stephen Kelly and Kenny Cunningham stunned into silence.

Kelly would chip in to defend RTÉ, before Sadlier further explained his thinking.

“If you’re a company, though, and there’s a forced break, it’s the opportune time to take it,” argued Kelly.

Then came Sadlier’s retort.

For me, there’s a commerical argument that is legitimate. But the event is still ongoing.

The players are still on the pitch, there’s interactions between the coach and players, there’s something happening that was maybe relevant.

We’ve decided, ‘No, forget about it, let’s just promote stuff.’

It was a remarkable moment of football TV, hearing a pundit criticising the channel for which he was working.

However, few viewers would have argued with Sadlier, with the introduction of mid-game ad breaks deeply unpopular with fans watching the opening game of the World Cup.

Intriguingly, RTÉ opted not to cut to adverts during the second-half hydration break, which came just after Raul Jimenez scored Mexico’s second in their eventual 2-0 win. Three players were sent off in a bizarre opening game.

Deep into the late hours of Thursday evening came the second game in Group A, as South Korea and Czechia faced off in Guadalajara, much to the pain of Irish viewers.

For some late World Cup games, RTÉ have opted to utilise FIFA’s world feed, something they used for Thursday’s late game. Despite not having their own commentators on duty, RTÉ’s coverage did not cut to an ad break.

Whether Richie Sadlier’s words had an impact or not is unclear, but perhaps some broadcasters will be questioning the wisdom of cutting to mid-game ad breaks as the World Cup progresses.

This is set to be the strangest of World Cups.