BrewDog defends decision to screen World Cup after 'anti-sponsor' stunt

BrewDog has defended its decision to screen the FIFA World Cup in its bars after launching an advertising campaign criticising the event.

On Monday the brewer declared itself the ‘anti-sponsor’ to the tournament, which begins in Qatar in two weeks, and dubbed it the ‘World F*Cup’.

Billboard adverts went up comparing the decision to host the competition in Qatar as being the equivalent of it taking place in Russia or North Korea. The company also drew attention to the accusations of corruption that have surrounded the event.

BrewDog said all profits made from sales of its Lost Lager during the tournament will be shared with organisations fighting human rights abuse.

However, many responses on social media questioned why the event was still being screened in its bars.

One twitter user wrote: “But you’re still showing the tournament? Isn’t that just supporting them?”

Another added: “Boycotting the World Cup whilst showing the World Cup is some spectacular logic.”

Other social media users questioned BrewDog’s criticism of the treatment of workers in Qatar when it was accused by over 100 of its own staff of creating a “culture of fear” within the business in 2021. BrewDog has since admitted it “made mistakes” and introduced more structured support for staff.

A BrewDog spokesperson told The Caterer: “We thought long and hard about whether we wanted to show matches in our bars but decided to do so for two reasons.

“One, if you love craft beer and you also love football you shouldn’t be denied the chance to enjoy them together just because FIFA is corrupt.

“Two, all profits from Lost Lager sold during the tournament will be donated to human rights charities. We will raise a lot more money if we show the matches in our bars.”

BrewDog’s co-founder James Watt today tweeted that the response to the campaign had been “incredible”. He added: “And if a bit of the usual Twitter hate is the price we have to pay for massively raising awareness of the continued human rights abuses in Qatar and the obvious corruption of FIFA, then so be it.”

BrewDog was founded in 2007 and now operates over 100 bars worldwide.