QATAR (CelebrityAccess) — In a turnaround on Friday, International soccer governing body FIFA announced that the sale of alcohol around stadiums in Quatar would be prohibited.
“Following discussions between host country authorities and FIFA, a decision has been made to focus the sale of alcoholic beverages on the FIFA Fan Festival, other fan destinations and licensed venues, removing sales points of beer from Qatar’s FIFA World Cup 2022 stadium perimeters.
However, the sale of Bud Zero, an alcohol-free beer manufactured by Budweiser, a primary sponsor of the 2022 World Cup, would be unaffected, FIFA said.
Quatar, a Muslim theocratic monarchy, imposes strict regulation on the sale and use of alcohol in the country, and is typically only available in licensed hotel restaurants and bars that serve expatriates and foreign visitors.
An agreement to allow the sale of beer in World Cup stadiums but appears to have succumbed to local pressure from civil authorities.
The World Cup kicks off on Sunday.
