1m extra pints to be sold during Rugby World Cup final

30-Oct-2019 - Last updated on 30-Oct-2019 at 11:09 GMT

Maul over it: if England win against South Africa in the Rugby World Cup final, the pub trade could see a £3.8m boost

Related tags Rugby Beer

Pubs will sell 1m extra pints during the Rugby World Cup final – but only if England win – according to a prediction from the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA).

England are set to play South Africa on ‘Super Saturday’ (2 October) in the final game of the tournament, which is taking place in Japan.

An eight-hour time difference means that any impact on beer sales would be likely to occur after the match – which will be broadcast from 9am in the UK – finishes.

Ultimate atmosphere

Rugby fans are expected to stay in pubs into the afternoon and evening to celebrate an English victory.

Match-day beer sales could bring as much as a £3.8m boost to the sector, according to the trade association.

More than one in five (22%) Brits said the ultimate place to watch rugby was at the pub with friends because of the atmosphere, in research from Greene King IPA.

BBPA policy director Andrew Tighe said the final offered lots of opportunities to the sector.

He said: “There’s no better place to enjoy live sport on TV than at the great British pub, so England playing in the Rugby World Cup final is a great opportunity for publicans.”

Diverse offers

He continued: “With the early kick-off time at 9am, pubs will be looking to make the most of their increasingly broad offer – laying on breakfasts and coffees – to get England fans through the door.

“If England do win the Rugby World Cup, we expect many fans to stay in their local for the afternoon and evening to celebrate, boosting beer sales by up to 1m pints. Come on England!”

The BBPA also predicted that beer duty and VAT from extra sales mean HMRC would get an additional windfall as high as £1.2m from pubgoers.

There was a 5% increase in rugby fans searching for pubs on the opening weekend of the tournament compared to the start of the 2015 series, according to app MatchPint.