The 55-year-old, "X Factor" judge said he has been hinting the fans for months about the hiatus to try and avoid any broken hearts, reported Daily Mirror.
"I kind of hinted a few months ago they'd be having time off. We haven't had a conversation where anyone has said it is the end, but the conversations have been, 'We're exhausted, can we have time off?'
"You saw in the film we made that they went out to get shoes and within seconds they were mobbed. You can't live your life like that forever," Cowell said.