The global drinks giant, whose brands include Guinness, Smirnoff, Johnnie Walker and Don Julio, reported a 2% fall in sales to $19.6bn for the year to 30 June 2026.
Join our new WhatsApp channel: The Morning Round-Up
Get the biggest pub trade stories straight to your phone. Listen to our one-minute daily news briefing and receive breaking news, exclusives and sector updates throughout the day. Remember to turn notifications on in the top right corner! Join the channel here.
However, Guinness remained a standout performer, with sales in Great Britain rising 2.9%, driven by double-digit growth of the stout in pubs and bars.
In its annual report, Diageo said Guinness continued to gain market share and significantly outperform the wider beer category, building on momentum seen earlier this year when the brand helped drive third-quarter sales growth.
Increased demand
Guinness 0.0 also recorded double-digit growth, maintaining its position as the UK’s leading alcohol-free beer brand as demand for no and low options continued to grow.
The brand’s performance helped drive a 3.4% increase in sales across Europe, with Guinness also continuing to grow in Ireland.
Globally, Guinness sales rose 12%, making it one of Diageo’s strongest-performing brands.
Reflecting that success, chief executive Dave Lewis said Diageo would step up investment in Guinness.
Unveiling a $3.75bn (£2.8bn) investment programme, including $1bn earmarked for the stout, he said: “We’re going to double the capacity of Guinness during the course of this plan.”
Rapid growth
Beer was one of the strongest areas of Diageo’s business, with sales up 5% globally, compared with a 1% decline in spirits. Ready-to-drink products also continued their rapid growth, with sales rising 25%.
While the company faced challenges in North America and China, Lewis said savings from a wider cost-cutting programme would help fund investment in growth areas, including Latin America and Africa.
Diageo added it plans to cut $1bn in costs over the next three years while continuing to back key brands such as Guinness.
Reported operating profit fell 27.2% to $3.2bn, largely due to restructuring costs and write-downs. Despite the weaker performance, free cash flow increased to $3.2bn.
