In addition to picking up a US$42 million prize, players from the World Cup-winning team will be able to walk away with tens of thousands of cans of Budweiser beer as a result of the ban on the sale of alcohol around stadiums decreed Friday in Qatar.
• Read also: Soccer World Cup: five big surprises since 2002
• Read also: Qatar 2022: Messi’s Argentina humiliated by Saudi Arabia
In preparation for the matches, Budweiser had stored pallets full of cases of beer in a warehouse. However, the ban on the sale of alcohol will ultimately prevent him from selling them.
“Well, it’s uncomfortable …”, reacted the company on its Twitter account following the announcement of the ban on Friday, before deleting its tweet.
This was replaced by another tweet announcing that the World Cup-winning country will leave with the stock of beer planned for the event. The number of cans contained in the warehouse was not specified.
More officially, Budweiser reacted Friday through a spokesperson saying that it had taken note of Qatar’s decision and that it would comply with it.
Only fans with access to VIP tents will be able to obtain alcoholic beverages.
The cost of these also promises to be prohibitive, with around ten euros for a simple beer, AFP reported.
A partner of FIFA for three decades, Budweiser would have paid around C$63 million to renew its agreement for the 2022 World Cup.
The agreement also involved long preparations, including the shipment of beer shipments by boat from the United Kingdom to Qatar, a journey of almost a month according to the British daily “The Sun”.
