Salomon Kalou has criticised FIFA’s plan to use compulsory hydration intervals at the 2026 World Cup, claiming the planned pauses are unnecessary and can unsettle the flow of play.
Key takeaways
- Kalou believes players already have enough chances to drink during matches without scheduled interruptions.
- The former Chelsea forward argues hydration breaks can disrupt team chemistry and the momentum built during games.
- He says football’s defining elements—rhythm, intensity and concentration—can be affected by the timing of stoppages.
- FIFA tested the concept first at the expanded Club World Cup in the United States before applying it to the World Cup.
- Kalou, now 40, has shifted focus to life after football, including fatherhood with two young sons.
Kalou questions FIFA’s hydration-break plan
Speaking at a SuperSport media roundtable on Monday, the former Ivory Coast international said he does not see a need for mandated water breaks, arguing that athletes can take on fluids whenever they feel it is required.
Kalou said the hydration interval risks changing how a side operates, particularly by affecting chemistry and the momentum a team has worked to establish against opponents. He added that the sport is driven by sustained rhythm, high intensity and keeping focus, and that enforced stoppages can alter those factors.
How the rule was tested and Kalou’s career perspective
FIFA introduced the approach in a trial format at the expanded Club World Cup in the United States last year, before widening it to the World Cup. The governing body pointed to the challenge of extreme weather conditions across the tournament’s three host nations.
Kalou, 40, built a highly decorated club career starting with ASEC Mimosas and moving through Feyenoord, where he netted 35 times in 67 appearances. He then joined Chelsea, enjoying six seasons at Stamford Bridge and winning the UEFA Champions League in 2012, along with the Premier League, four FA Cups and the League Cup.
After leaving England, he played for Lille and Hertha Berlin, before finishing his career with spells at Botafogo and Arta/Solar7.
International honours and life after football
On the international stage, the winger earned 93 caps and scored 27 goals for the Elephants. He represented Côte d’Ivoire at the 2010 and 2014 World Cups and helped his country win the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.
Since retiring, Kalou says he has fully embraced being away from the sport. He described being back in his home country, noting that he is no longer playing or coaching and has stepped away from following football in the same way as before.
Fatherhood is his central focus now, with two sons aged three and two. He said they have plenty of energy, adding that he cannot yet tell whether either will grow up to become footballers, especially since both were too young to see him play.
Kalou also shared that he has been showing his children pieces of his career through his medal collection. He said he has shown them the honours he won at Chelsea and that, while looking at the 2012 Champions League album with one of his kids, the youngster repeatedly recognised his picture and called out “This is Daddy!”
He described that experience as particularly special, and said he has many stories to pass on—about dressing-room life, the people he played alongside, and the variety of clubs he represented. He added that his spell at Chelsea stands out as one of the best periods of his playing career.
