FIFA, the world football governing body, has taken a cue from the Super Bowl and is hosting its first-ever halftime show at the World Cup final outside New York on Sunday night. Justin Bieber, Madonna, Shakira and BTS are among the artists performing.
TV4 was criticised for not showing Shakira's performance at the opening ceremony of the World Cup's opening match on June 11 between Mexico and South Africa. But Johan Cederqvist promises that viewers will get to see almost all of the half-time entertainment in the final.
Our plan is to be on commercials when it's rigged up and down, so we can show as much of that display as possible, he says.
30 minute break
The half-time entertainment means that the break is expected to be a full 30 minutes long, according to several media outlets. That is twice as long as the normal break between the two halves of a match. It also violates FIFA's own rules that a half-time break can only last a maximum of 15 minutes. FIFA has not confirmed or denied the information.
As a commercial channel, TV4 needs to broadcast advertising between halves, and the experts' studio chats should also be given space.
The TV4 channel's broadcast will be a bit of a compromise between many different interests. How much should we talk about the match and how much should we show the show? So it's about finding the right balance there, says Johan Cederqvist.
Closing ceremony
He says that the entire halftime show and also the closing ceremony that begins an hour and a half before the World Cup final with, among others, Post Malone, Tom Cruise, Nicole Scherzinger, Robbie Williams and I Show Speed will be available to watch on TV4 Play, where anyone who pays for a subscription can watch the broadcast commercial-free.
If you really want to make sure you don't miss a minute, you can check TV4 Play.
The World Cup final between Spain and Argentina will be played at 9 pm on Sunday. TV4 will start broadcasting at 7:30 pm.
