FIFA changes water bottle rules at World Cup matches after fans, politicians kick up a fuss

FIFA has decided that fans will be able to bring one factory-sealed disposable water bottle to its World Cup 2026 matches in Canada and the United States.

The water bottle must be soft plastic and no larger than 20 ounces, or 590 millimetres, the organization said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday evening.

Heimo Schirgi, FIFA World Cup 2026 chief operating officer, said in the post that fans will not be allowed to bring in hard-sided, reusable water bottles into stadiums due to safety and security reasons.

Schirgi said he wanted to provide "some clarity" on the policies in Canada and the U.S. Earlier this week, news that FIFA would not allow fans to bring fillable water bottles to matches prompted sharp criticism, including from fans and host city politicians.

In a document dated Tuesday, the organization had said “for the avoidance of doubt, reusable water bottles may not be brought into the stadium.”

Before FIFA reversed the ban, Dr. Michelle Murti, Toronto's chief medical officer, said she was concerned about how the temperature and possible heat alerts migt impact fans. 

"That is part of the response we provided to the FIFA committee, that we want to make sure we are looking at everything possible so that fans in the stadium can maintain proper hydration," Murti had said. 

Sharon Bollenbach, executive director of the city's FIFA World Cup 2026 Toronto Secretariat, said Toronto will allow fans to bring clear plastic water bottles to fan festival events, which will have refill stations available. She said water trucks and trailers will be posted around the city to help people stay hydrated.

Toronto will host six matches from June 12 to July 2, while Vancouver will host seven matches from June 13 to July 7.