Britain is gearing up for another summer of spectacular goals, nail biting penalties and (hopefully not) crushing disappointment,\u00a0because\u00a0the World Cup is officially back from June 2026. Could the Three Lions bring it home? Only time will tell. One thing we do know, however, is that pubs\u00a0are going to be allowed to stay open much later during tournament. There\u2019s nothing like football and beer to bring the nation together.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Treasury minister Dan Tomlinson has told MPs that boozers may be allowed to serve until 1am or even 2am on match days during the World Cup 2026. The longer opening hours would account for\u00a0knockout games featuring the home nations \u2013 with the competition taking place in North America, some\u00a0fixtures may not begin until after well after midnight.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Last week Parliament passed a bill which would make it easier to allow pubs to open later for football matches or other national occasions.<\/p>\n
Speaking during a statement in the House of Commons\u00a0that also announced a support package for business rates for pubs<\/a>,\u00a0Tomlinson said: \u2018I can also announce today that pubs and other licensed venues will be able to open until 1am or 2am depending on when the game starts for home nation games in the later stages of the men’s football World Cup this summer.<\/p>\n \u2018And we will legislate to increase the number of temporary events notices for pubs and other hospitality venues, whether that is to help them screen World Cup games or other community and cultural events.\u2019<\/p>\n England and Scotland have already qualified for the tournament, which kicks off on June 11.\u00a0Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland could also qualify if they win their play-off fixtures.<\/p>\n In more pubs news, Wetherspoons is opening 12 new\u00a0boozers before July 2026, including one in Europe<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n