Alcohol sales in Qatar venues banned two days before start
Social media users joke that it is an incentive to get knocked out
The Fifa World Cup
sponsor Budweiser has announced that the alcoholic beer it cannot sell
in stadiums in Qatar will go to the winning country of the tournament.
Despite Budweiser’s reported $75m (£63m) deal with Fifa, a decision that alcoholic beer could not be sold
in World Cup stadiums was taken two days before the tournament started.
That led the brand to tweet – then delete – the message: “Well, this is
awkward …”
Budweiser
announced the beer would go to the winning side with a tweet saying:
“New Day, New Tweet. Winning Country gets the Buds. Who will get them?”
and a picture of a large quantity of beer in a storage warehouse.
The move sparked considerable mockery on social media, with some users
suggesting the move acts as a disincentive to winning the World Cup
because the American brand of beer has a low reputation in some European
countries, despite its being owned by AB InBev, which is based in
Leuven in Belgium. “Props to Budweiser on giving everyone the perfect
excuse to not win the tournament,” quipped one person on Twitter.
The company’s non-alcoholic brand, Bud Zero, is
still available in the stadiums. Budweiser has been a World Cup sponsor
since the 1986 tournament in Mexico. In the wake of the announcement of
the beer ban, Fifa’s president, Gianni Infantino, said the governing
body had failed to persuade the Qatar government to stand by the
original decision to allow sales, but that if anything the situation
“has brought us even closer together” with Budweiser.
Now
it looks as if the team that prevail in Qatar’s alcohol-free Lusail
Stadium in the final on 18 November will be taking home not just the
trophy and the $42m (£35m) prize money, but a slab of beer for their
country as well
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