‘Beer crazy’ World Cup

Before the start of the World Cup in June, there was widespread anxiety that the tournament could risk resulting in a ‘binge drinking own goal’. Previous football events such as Euro 1996, and the 1998 World Cup, saw many episodes of violence and rioting, as a result of mass confrontations of inebriated fans, and it was feared that a possible upsurge in alcohol related crime and disorder was likely to occur as a result of the 2006 World Cup, especially as the timing of the matches coincided with usual drinking hours – contrary to the previous World Cup held in Japan in 2002.

The timing of the tournament was thus seen as potentially problematic. On the six month anniversary of the implementation of the legislation, shadow secretary of state for Culture, Media and Sport, Hugo Swire said: “It is too early to judge the full impact of the of the extended opening hours, but the summer, and particularly the World Cup, will be the real test of what effect the changes will have”

How big a test of the new licensing regime and its longer trading hours the World Cup would provide was, however, unclear, as the matches were all scheduled to be played at times when the pubs would have been open in any case under the old regime.

Impact of Licensing Act 2003
Independently of the World Cup, the impact of the new Licensing Act is uncertain. For one thing, the effects of the nationwide police enforcement campaigns coinciding with the introduction of the Act have complicated the picture. This has not prevented the Government and the licensed trade from claiming that early crime figures show the new Act is succeeding as there does not appear to have been the upsurge in crime that some in the media predicted.

One body clearly unconvinced by the Government’s presentation of the crime figures was the Association of Chief Police Officers. Chris Allison, ACPO lead on Licensing and Commander in the Metropolitan Police Service, said: “ACPO has consistently welcomed much of the new Licensing Act and the Police Service is already making use of the new powers that are available to it. We fully agree with the Minister that is far too early to say whether the extension to the licensing hours has had a positive or negative impact on crime and disorder.”

The figures quoted are not comparing like with like and do not take account of the fact that the Home Office gave £2.5 million in additional funding for Police and Local Authority enforcement activity during the period 14th November 2005 through to the 24th December 2006. ACPO has consistently said that it will be at least a year before we can measure the true impact of the act and we remain firmly of that view.

ACPO is working closely with the Government and other key partners on the review of the Guidance in an attempt to deal with areas of concern that have become apparent since implementation of the Act.

Beer Bonanza
With an estimated 815 million pints of beer sold during the World Cup, which represents an increase in sales of 60 million pints compared with the same period last year, the licensed trade have unquestionably come out as the true winners of the tournament. The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) reported that “the feel good factor as well as convenient kick off times helped many pubs boost sales and attract a large clientele”. Before the start of the event, the British Retail Consortium predicted that for every week England remained in the tournament, an extra £124 million would be spent on food and drink, a figure mostly comprising beer, but also wines and spirits, snacks and confectionery. Evidently, opportunities to maximise profits during this time were welcomed by retailers beyond the licensed trade, and sales of football paraphernalia – ranging from inflatable hands to large screen televisions – soared.

Benefits for the alcohol beverage industry have spanned beyond the UK, however, as Anheuser-Busch, the brewer of Budweiser, and official sponsor of the 2006 FIFA World Cup, has just announced that it will retain its sponsor position until 2014. A spokesperson for the brand claimed: “In every corner of the World, football fans share a passion for their favourite teams and players, and they enjoy watching the games with a cold beer”.

This recent announcement has merely sparked up the heated debate surrounding the sponsorship of sports events by alcoholic brands, a marketing strategy believed to be particularly effective amongst young people. The US based Centre for Science in the Public Interest has circulated a “Global Resolution to End Alcohol Promotion in World Cup Events”, seeking the endorsement of concerned organisations and government officials.

It is hoped that this will represent a first step towards diminishing the influence of the alcohol beverage industry, whose interests, certainly in the UK, continue to be, to a large extent, protected by the Government. Indeed, this ambiguous ‘entente’ has been well documented by the Institute of Alcohol Studies and others and the implementation of the Licensing Act 2003 merely served to reinforce the drinks industry’s position as the key stakeholder.

Before the World Cup, the BBPA consented to an ‘action plan’ with Government Ministers, in an effort to encourage corporate social responsibility. The proposed aim of this was to “target sales to under 18s, continue to improve drinks retailing standards and deliver responsible trading practices over the World Cupand summer period” (BBPA Press Release 16 May 2006). However, this pledge appears to be at odds with a comment made by a BBPA spokesman, who claimed: “ If we make it to the final the whole country will go beer crazy in celebration” (The Publican 8 June 2006). He also suggested further measures would be implemented within licensed premises in order to create a safe environment for the fans, including ‘enhanced security on the doors where needed, entertainment after the matches so people don’t all leave at once, calming music played, and food promotions to make sure customers are eating as well as drinking’.

In the aftermath of the tournament, Mark Hastings from BBPA applauded licensees for the successful management of the event: “Pubs once again proved they are the home of responsible drinking and the ideal place to experience the roller coaster ride that is the inevitable part of following England in the World Cup”.

The national team’s opening match against Paraguay could perhaps be best described as such, given the violent fights that broke out during the match, resulting in outdoor television screens being banned in London and Liverpool. Although no exact figures of arrests for alcohol related offences during this period have been released in the UK, a recent poll conducted in five European countries suggests that England is widely considered as having the worst behaved and most troublesome fans,predominantly as a result of excessive alcohol consumption. However, it was also reported that of the 9000 fans arrested in Germany, 810 cases involved England fans, most of which were in fact ‘preventive arrests’; the cooperation between police forces in Germany has been highly praised, and the British Police successfully managed to keep at bay the 3500 known hooligans prevented from entering the country.

Nonetheless, the impact of the tournament in terms of alcohol related crime and disorder still remains unclear, as the results of the 4th Alcohol Misuse Enforcement Campaign (AMEC), which ran one month prior to the event are still unknown. Indeed, the £2.5 million nationwide campaign,launched by the Government and the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), involved all 43 police forces in England and Wales, and was expected to set standards of ‘acceptable behaviour’ across British town and city centres. The campaign was the second to run since the implementation of the Licensing Act 2003, in November 2005; the legislation granted the police additional powers of enforcement to combat alcohol related crime and disorder, by enabling them to take firm action against shops, stores, pubs and clubs selling alcohol to under 18’s, as well as bars and clubs that actively promote excessive drinking. Despite these additional powers of enforcement, it is unlikely that the majority of licensed premises will have been suddenly transformed into safe havens of relaxed entertainment.

Information or data concerning local police enforcement initiatives remain dispersed and largely anecdotal. Recently published Home Office Statistics from the 2006 Crime Survey for England and Wales, allegedly show that there has been ‘no indication of a rise in the overall level of offence or a shift in the timing of offences as a result in the changes in opening hours of licensed premises’. These figures have already been embraced by the recently appointed Licensing Minister, Shaun Woodward, who echoed this view by claiming that the new regime had led to ‘no discernable increase in alcohol related crime and disorder since November’. It is yet too early to draw conclusions on the impact of the World Cup during this transitional period; as expressed before, the effects of the legislation are likely to be cumulative, and any objective evaluation should account for the exceptional circumstances that are the combination of major police enforcement campaigns alongside an international football tournament.

Emilie Rapley
Policy and Research Officer
at the Institute of Alcohol Studies