Qatar is expecting around 1 million fans over the course of the next few days for World Cup action.
But they won’t be able to purchase beer at any of the eight stadiums in Qatar.
FIFA on Friday announced that the sale of alcohol will be banned in and around the stadiums. The announcement came about 48 hours prior to the opening kick of the tournament.
“Following discussions between host country authorities and FIFA, a decision has been made to focus the sale of alcoholic beverages on the FIFA Fan Festival, other fan destinations and licensed venues, removing the sales points of beer from Qatar’s FIFA World Cup 2022 stadium perimeters,” FIFA said in their statement.
Bud Zero, Budweiser’s non-alcoholic beer, will be served.
Qatar learned it would host the World Cup in 2010, and Budweiser has been a sponsor of the World Cup for over 30 years and has a $75 million sponsorship agreement with FIFA.
Qatar begins its tournament Sunday against Ecuador.
