World Cup - World Cup 'must have beer'
Beer will be sold at the 12 venues of the 2014 World Cup finals, FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke has said in an attempt to close all further discussion on a controversial issue in Brazil.
Voting on the bill for the World Cup Law has been held up over differences between the tournament hosts and world football's governing body, notably on the sale of alcoholic drinks at sports venues which is banned in Brazil.
The bill was scheduled to have been voted on by the chamber of deputies at the end of last year but it has been delayed by several issues including the sale of beer, with FIFA demanding protection of sponsors' trademarks.
"Alcoholic drinks are part of the FIFA World Cup, so we're going to have them. Excuse me if I sound a bit arrogant but that's something we won't negotiate," Valcke said.
"The fact that we have the right to sell beer has to be a part of the Law," he told the foreign press corps in an interview in Rio de Janeiro, where on Thursday he will hold a meeting with the World Cup local organizing committee.
Alcoholic drinks have been banned in Brazil's stadiums since 2003 as part of the Supporters' Statutes, aimed at preventing violence among hardcore fans at football matches.
Alexandre Padilha, health Minister in President Dilma Rousseff's government, and other members of parliament linked to health matters have put pressure on Congress to maintain the ban in the World Cup Law.
One of FIFA's longest-standings sponsors is the US brewer Budweiser, which belongs to the world's biggest beer-selling group Anheuser-Busch InBev.
"Our partner here is in fact a Brazilian company," said Valcke referring to the local AmBev which is part of AB InBev.
Another point of discord between the government and FIFA is half-price tickets for students and senior citizens which is the rule in Brazil.
Valcke said this issue would be resolved by creating a special category of tickets worth £16 each with 300,000 available for the group phase to several groups of people including students and the elderly.
He said, however, there needed to be strict controls of the people who qualified for these tickets.
"It's unfair if a person who can afford a category one ticket buys a category four ticket. We must guarantee this won't happen because apparently it's very easy to obtain a student card here," Valcke said.
Comment 120 - 139 of 139
Yay!!!!!! Beer wins!
@ 139 Thomas - Where did you learn to your English? I'd demand a refund if I were you.
Fifa cant tell other countrys what to do.there just in charge of football .i thank monty is right tell fifa to go to @#$% and start a now football company where every country take a turn to hold the word cup and if there a wee country then just hosted with another smaller country next to them.ie scotland would like to hold it but its to small but if they where to hold it with england wales and ireland then the cost would come down i know its knot like holding it in your country but its better then knot holden it at all.
This is about Budweiser isn't it? Budweiser isn't beer is it? Can't see Brazil having a problem with it being sold since nobody considers it to be beer. Who the hell would buy that p!$$ anyway? This is another non story
they best have beer,because i will b there
All countries awarded either the world cup or the olympics are contractually bound to change sovereign laws to suit the IOC / FIFA. The Daily Mail publishec an excellent article on just how many laws were being changed for the London Olympics - it's a total disgrace
Typical FIFA, really on the ball (sorry about the pun) corruption, racism ect everywhere, what are they gunning for!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! BEER, would love to know what would happen if Brazil don't have beer at the venues, what can FIFA do??????
I've got to agree with some comments on here about beer and hooliganism, it's a known that Brits are renownd the world over for alcohol abuse and 'trouble'. Allowing beer at the world cup will give the British supporters a green light to get loaded and go on a rampage, remember Marseille? Beer will be okay just as long as England don't qualify!
Let us what FIFA does when the WC is in Qatar !
It is not beer or freedom , it is the money for sure which FIFA is after. Qatar, we wait.
Why should they have beer?
It will only cause problems.
stop giving in to the wims of this patetic excuse of a pidctator ship with out a country and jsut say fine piss off and ask the clubs to come play with out fifa what do they think fifa will do ? if they are just cut out of prosedings then they wont get anything the fack that your all still cowtowing to them shows you all to be sheep I have been boycotting anything to do with fifa for years and look I am still alive no food ball didnt kill me yay now I enjoy cricket and boating but then maybe those at fifa and those that are stupid enouht to cowtow to them are also to stupid to undersatnd the rules of a game that involves more than kicking a ball at a net and missing it
no beer - no sponsor - no FIFA backhanders !! I think football might just survive without beer
Re-comment 125. To state hooliganism and beer has not appeared at previous world cups, I do recall at France 98 sitting in Bordeaux ready to watch Scotland when the English fans were broadcast on world TV rampaging in Marseille. If they were all sober then what a sorry bunch. "Tartan army foot soldier".
Who would want to watch football sober?
You might have thought that they would have considered this issue when they took the bribe to hold the WCF in Brazil!
So the official Beer could be Kaliber, after all beer does not have to be alcoholic. Mind you Kaliber is pretty rank imho!
Has there ever been reports of hooliganism at a WC in the past say 20 years? fuelled by alcohol? The WC is generally a very fun peace loving sporting attraction. People are there to enjoy themselves not fight. The mentality of fans at WC's should be the mentality of fans at local games too, if only. Think the bigger picture for Brazil is exactly what it was in SA. The Government of the country pleading to the dubious minority to pleas not mug WC tourists, as it gives the country a bad rep. SA managed to pull it off, and thats no mean feat in Joburg!! So Brazil i think should be more focused on that instead of worrying about what booze could cause.
Valcke said: "... apparently it's very easy to obtain a student card here."
OF COURSE IT IS, YOU DOUCHEBAG, ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS TO PROVE YOU ARE A FULLTIME STUDENT... ARSEWHOLE
There should be beer there for England fans. You`d have to be pissed to waste money going to watch that bunch of no hope tossers.
Sam (120) - You are wrong about Qatar.
Qatar bans the importation of alcohol and it is a punishable offense to drink alcohol or be drunk in public. Offenders may incur a prison sentence or deportation. Alcohol is, however, available at licensed hotel restaurants and bars, and non-Muslim expatriates living in Qatar can obtain alcohol on a permit system at the Qatar Distribution Center, the only distributor allowed to sell alcohol.
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