Pubs sell 59 million extra pints during World Cup

Convenient kick-off times and a "feelgood factor" among fans helped many pubs enjoy bumper sales during the World Cup.

According to the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) 59 million extra pints were sold in pubs during the tournament, resulting in an estimated additional income of £188 million.

And despite England's disappointing showing, large numbers of pubs profited from the later stages of the competition - including last Sunday's final between France and Italy.

At the Famous Three Kings, in West Kensington, West London, which has three big screens and 12 plasmas, sales were up 80 per cent week-on-week. Licensee Richard Marshall-Duffield said: "It's been an absolutely fantastic World Cup for us. We invested £40,000 in screens before the tournament, but it's been completely worth it.

"Having the World Cup in Europe has helped with convenient kick-off times and the only trouble we've has is with the referees. We can't wait until the next World Cup."

At the Original Oak in Headingley, Leeds, the first England group game saw the pub smash its record for a day's takings. "We had record levels of sales for the England games, apart from the Portugal game when everybody left straight afterwards because they were so depressed," said licensee Martyn Goulding.

"However there was still a healthy interest in the later games and we did well for the final."

Mark Hastings, the BBPA's communications director, said: "Pubs once again proved they are the home of responsible drinking and the ideal place to experience the roller coaster ride that is an inevitable part of following England in the World Cup."

But not every licensee had such a positive experience during the tournament. Martin Grady, licensee of the Redoubt in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, said: "There wasn't as much interest in this World Cup as there was four years ago in Japan, even though that was earlier in the day.

"For the final we were quieter than we were on a normal Sunday. The more sports-orientated bars with bigger screens did well at the expense of community pubs like mine."