Beer with alcohol is expected to be sold in World Cup stadiums in Qatar, but fans are only allowed to bring non-alcoholic drinks to their seats.
The organizers of FIFA and Qatari are still working on plans to accommodate all fans who want to drink at matches when the tournament starts in November in the Muslim-majority country. Hospitality packages that include premium drinks in stadiums have been on sale since February 2021, but a policy for most fans at the eight venues and longtime World Cup sponsor Budweiser has yet to be finalized less than five months before the tournament.
The favored option is serving beer with alcohol in stadium compounds before and after games and allowing fans to take non-alcoholic Budweiser Zero to their seats.
We will confirm and make things official in due course, FIFA said in a statement on Friday.
FIFA said it was still looking into possible branding for drinking cups that fans would keep in areas that will be broadcast to hundreds of millions of viewers.
The 2022 World Cup is the first in the tournament’s 92-year history to be played in a Muslim country with such strict social taboos surrounding alcohol.
Since FIFA chose the host country in 2010, questions have been raised about how Qatar would accommodate fans who want to drink alcohol.
The following year, FIFA extended a sponsorship deal with Budweiser brewer Anheuser-Busch until 2022. That collaboration started at the 1986 World Cup.
During the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, pressure from FIFA led local lawmakers to pass a special law exempting the tournament from banning the sale of alcohol in stadiums.
Qatari organizers were initially resistant to serving alcohol in stadiums, but ten years ago they promised to come up with a plan that would welcome everyone.”
Fans of the FIFA World Cup can enjoy Budweiser Zero and Budweiser during the tournament, Anheuser-Busch said in a statement on Friday.
Qatar has tested its alcohol policy in hosting football, including the 2019 World Club Championship, an event featuring European champions Liverpool, South American champions Flamengo and Mexican club Monterrey.
At that tournament, a drinking zone was created on the outskirts of Doha at a golf club that sells beers for 6, much cheaper than normally available at high-end hotels in the city center.
In 2019, a flaw in the plan took fans on an hour-long drive through rush hour traffic to games on buses without toilets.
The location of the golf club will be reconsidered for the World Cup, which is scheduled to take place from November 21 to December. 18.
The organizers are expecting about 1.2 million visitors to the 32-team tournament.
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