RTE will interrupt its coverage of World Cup matches in Brazil in June to show advertisements during “cooling breaks” for the players which are being introduced by Fifa, the world governing body of football.

The cooling breaks, mandatory when the temperature at venues rises to 32C or above, will be given to players 30 minutes into each half and will last for up to three minutes. During this time, RTE will show one, or possibly two, 30-second adverts.

The British commercial station ITV is also considering showing adverts during the slots.

It is the first time the national station will show advertising during matches, and marks a shift away from the policy dictated by Fifa which restricted advertising to pre and post-match periods and to