If you are attending some football games in this current African Cup of Nations being played in Ivory Coast (or watching them on TV if you have Beinsports or any other national channel), you may have witnessed the so called “cooling break” in each middle of first and second half: this five-minute break has been established to enable players and referees to quench thirst in times of heavy warmth in Abidjan and the surrounding cities. The cooling break, only about drinking water?
If the first reason why players and referees are allowed to take a cooling break is to refresh the body and rest a little bit after having made significant efforts under the sun, this is not the only advantage of this small interruption of the game. Of course, players can still swallow a fast draft here and there during the game, and the cooling break can barely allow to reload batteries before resuming the game, but such an interruption is also here to enable to refresh the mind.
As a matter of fact, this break can be used by coaches in order to transmit instructions and make adjustments depending on what they saw (and did not see) on the pitch. The cooling break can be an opportunity for two teammates to discuss a specific point or modify a system, something they do not always have the time to do when the game is in full swing.
Here to refresh the body or the mind, or both, the cooling break is at last the opportunity for those who are watching to take a closer look at the stands and contemplate the various outfits of the fans. Whether they are dancing, singing or just watching, it can be part of the show