Squabble brews at World Cup
Organizers work to balance changes from Qatari officials with Budwesier’s interests
The message came from the highest levels of the Qatari state: The beer tents must be moved, and there would be no discussion about it.
With the opening game of the World Cup days away, Qatari organizers were working to relocate Budweiser-branded beer stations at eight stadiums after a sudden demand that three people with knowledge of the belated change said had come from inside the country’s royal family.
The people spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss sensitive planning details for the tournament. Budweiser said it only learned of the new plan last Saturday. The tournament begins this Sunday.
The decision to move the beer stations appeared to be rooted in concern that the prominent presence of alcohol at stadiums during the monthlong World Cup would unsettle the local population and thus represent a potential security problem.
But it also highlighted an issue that has stalked the buildup to the first World Cup in the Arab world, and that is expected to be contentious throughout the tournament in Qatar, a conservative Muslim country.
Ever since FIFA, soccer’s global governing body, awarded the hosting rights to Qatar in December 2010, tournament organizers have grappled with balancing the obligations they signed up to fulfill — which include the sale of alcohol and providing promotional space for Budweiser, one of FIFA’s biggest sponsors — with concerns about upsetting, or alienating, a domestic constituency that has chafed at some of the culture clash inherent in bringing a traditionally beer-soaked event to a Muslim nation.
Alcohol is not banned in Qatar, but most visitors are able to purchase it only at bars inside designated hotels.
FIFA and Qatari officials had struggled for years to devise a plan for the World Cup, where beer has flowed freely for generations, before finally deciding that the sale of alcoholic beverages would be permitted within a security perimeter outside venues but not inside the stadium bowls themselves.
Still, moves that limit Budweiser’s branding or affect its ability to sell its products could complicate FIFA’s relationship with a powerful partner, not to mention the contractual relationship between the brewer, the governing body and Qatari World Cup organizers.
Budweiser pays roughly $75 million to associate itself with the World Cup every four years.
But a World Cup in Qatar has produced unusual obstacles, and led to ongoing tensions between the company and FIFA over issues ranging from agreeing on sales points in Qatar to negotiating how to get supplies into the country.
Budweiser said it is “working with FIFA to relocate the concession outlets to locations as directed,” a company spokesperson told The New York Times in a statement.
Staff members wearing yellow safety vests have been seen rolling beer tents decorated with Budweiser’s logo to new locations.
Qatari officials are said to have asked that the tents be moved away from other concession points, including those belonging to McDonald’s, another FIFA partner, but also merchandise stalls and other sponsor-themed activities.