There are probably few relationships as close between a product and an activity as there are between football spectators and beer. At least in the general positioning, when going to a stadium to watch a game or following it on television, an element that should not be missing is a glass of beer.
This alcoholic drink is one of the best-selling products before, during and after football matches. The relationship and consumption skyrockets when the matches are more important, being the World Cup -for obvious reasons- the moment of greatest relevance in the relationship between the two.
However, the sports tournament that is currently taking place in Qatar has broken this solid marriage, at least in and around the stadiums. What seemed incredible has come true, and the fans who attend the stadiums will have to accompany the show with non-intoxicating drinks.
The measure was announced two days after the start of the World Cup, breaking with the agreement that fans could drink beer in certain areas of the stadiums. Among those most affected by the ban are football lovers and the Budweiser beer manufacturer, sponsor of the event and the only one authorized to sell beer in this framework.
Stadium attendees will have to settle for tricking their palates with a non-alcoholic beer from the same manufacturer, which sells for around 280 Mexican pesos.
The sale of beer during the World Cup will continue in certain spaces in Qatar, but not in the stadiums and their surrounding areas. The measure will provoke lawsuits from the beer company against the organizers of the World Cup, by failing to comply with the original conditions of the sponsorship, seeing their income diminished due to the prohibition of the sale of alcoholic beer.
Disapproved out of hand by most of the voices involved, on second thought this may not be an entirely negative measure. It is common knowledge that excessive alcohol consumption is harmful to health and is usually one of the components present in violent events in stadiums. Let’s observe the reactions to this measure that will surely stay in Qatar, since in many other parts of the world and before the development of many other sporting events, beer is and will be a permanent assistant.