Qatar has banned the sale of alcoholic beer during the two week World Cup, the Federation Internationale de Football Association confirmed Friday, following multiple media reports indicating sharp-reversal of a prior agreement with tournament organizers.
Qatar, which has strict rules against the public consumption of alcohol, had previously arranged with FIFA, as well as its main sponsor Budweiser, to allow beer sales in tightly-restricted 'fan zones' around the eight stadia that will host matches over the three-and-a-half week jamboree, which begins on Sunday.
Bud Zero, Budweiser's non-alcoholic alternative, will be available at all Stadia, FIFA said.
“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," the administration said in a statement. "It will also remove sales points of beer from Qatar’s FIFA World Cup 2022 stadium perimeters.”
The U.S. listed shares of Anheuser-Busch Inbev SA (BUDFF) , the parent company of Budweiser that is based in the Belgian city of Leuven, were marked 1.1% higher in pre-market trading to indicate a Friday opening bell price of $55.62 each.
Qatar had reached an agreement with both FIFA and AB InBev to allowed ticketed fans to buy beer outside the stadium of World Cup matches three hours prior to kick-off and for one hour after the final whistle.
Budweiser was also given permission to sell beer at the main FIFA 'fan zone' in the capital city of Doha for a six-and-a-half hour period each day.
