The World Cup-related increase in sales, as fans followed England and Scotland games, also appears to have outstripped that seen during previous competitions, including England\u2019s run to the final of Euro 2024.<\/p>\n
The standout day over the course of the last three tournaments, in terms of sales uplift relative to a normal shift, was England\u2019s game against Mexico in the early hours of the morning, according to data from the payment systems provider Epos Now.<\/p>\n
Sales nearly doubled on that day compared with the same period pre-tournament, as pubs were permitted to open through the night and could trade in regular hours as well.<\/p>\n
Sales nearly doubled on the day of England\u2019s game against Mexico. Photograph: Scott Heppell\/AFP\/Getty<\/p>\n
Three other games delivered a two-thirds increase in the number of transactions, according to the data.<\/p>\n
By contrast, only two games at each of Qatar 2022 and Euro 2024 led to an increase of more than 50%.<\/p>\n
Another payments provider, Dojo, said sales over the entire course of the tournament were 16% higher than normal, while the overall World Cup-related boost was 9% better than in Euro 2024.<\/p>\n
The rise in sales was swiftly followed by a \u00a3100m aid package for pubs from Andy Burnham, who announced a 20% cut in business rates for the sector on Thursday. While the government policy was criticised for a lack of ambition<\/a>, the dual benefits of the tax cut and the football brought rare respite for the hard-pressed industry, which recorded one pub a day closing last year<\/a>, in England and Wales.<\/p>\n The combination of the World Cup and Andy Burnham\u2019s \u00a3100m aid package brought rare respite for the pub industry. Photograph: Vuk Valcic\/Zuma\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n Dawn Slater, who runs the Garrick\u2019s Head pub in Greater Manchester, said she and her staff had more than doubled their sales compared with previous tournaments after expanding capacity outside and installing giant screens.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been really busy, fully booked every game. We stopped entry two hours before each game.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople definitely spent more money on this tournament but it was also more expensive to put it on. We had extra TVs, an outside bar. Plastic cups and pitchers alone cost us \u00a38,700. But the take was good.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve had to be here from 10am staying open till 2am most games and getting in bed at 5am. It was worth every minute, I wouldn\u2019t change anything.\u201d<\/p>\n However, busy match days were often followed by quieter periods, offsetting some of the gains, with trading dependent on England\u2019s progress.<\/p>\n
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