Qatar World Cup organisers could ban beer from all 8 stadiums- Report

In a shocking U-turn to Qatar World Cup organisers’ move to allow the sale of beer at all eight stadiums, now hosts are reportedly asking FIFA to stop the sale of the alcoholic drink.

Budweiser beer stands at the eight World Cup stadiums are being moved aside to less prominent spots, Qatari organizers has said on Monday.

As per the Guardian’s report, the world cup hosts now want to go even further and that discussions are ongoing between Fifa and Budweiser. A decision is expected on Friday but it is believed beer could be banned from all stadiums.

Qatar consented when launching its historic hosting bid in 2009 to respect FIFA’s commercial partnerships, including the long-established Budweiser deal that was renewed 11 years ago with brewer AB InBev through the 2022 tournament.

On Saturday, just eight days before the first games, the agreement was tweaked to give Budweiser-branded sales tents less visibility for serving beer with alcohol within stadium perimeters.

The alcohol policy states that champagne, wines and spirits as well as beer will be served at stadium restaurants and lounges for corporate hospitality clients. Fans staying in most high-end hotels and three cruise ships hired by organizers as floating hotels for the tournament can also buy a range of alcoholic drinks.

Generally in Qatar, public drunkenness is punishable by hefty fines and jailing. But the head of Qatar’s security operations has said that during the tournament, police will turn a blind eye to most offenses but potentially make arrests if someone gets into a drunken brawl or damages public property. The legal drinking age is 21, and bouncers at bars often ask for photo ID or passports upon entry.