It is reported that sponsors are dissatisfied with the decision of the International Football Federation (FIFA) to withdraw its plan to sell beer at the Qatar World Cup stadium two days before the opening day.



According to British daily Guardian, several World Cup sponsors are concerned about the sudden decision, and some have raised the issue directly with FIFA.



Sponsor Budweiser, notified of the 'no stadium beer' policy, wrote "Well, this is awkward..." on the official Twitter account, but the post has now been deleted.



"A lot of sponsors are disappointed with FIFA in many ways," a source from another major sponsor told The Guardian. "Everyone is dissatisfied in one way or another."



"We are continuing the 'maintenance' work to figure out what this decision means under the contract," he explained.



The Guardian added that this signaled that sponsors were weighing this as a potential breach of contract.



Prior to that day, FIFA announced that "according to discussions with the host country's authorities, it has been decided to remove beer sales points around the Qatar World Cup Stadium."



"There will be no impact on sales of 'Bud Zero' (sponsor Budweiser's non-alcoholic beer), which will continue to be available for purchase at the stadium," it added.





Qatar, an Islamic country, is a country where alcohol sales and drinking are prohibited, but during the World Cup, a 'global festival', ticket holders were allowed to sell beer in designated areas outside the stadium.



You can't drink while watching the game inside the stadium, but you can drink in the designated area before the game and enter the stadium.



However, Qatar, the host country, notified Budweiser to change the beer sales area around the stadium to a less conspicuous place, and FIFA continued to express its opinion that beer sales around the stadium should be banned.



Since 1985, FIFA has had a sponsorship relationship with Anheuser-Busch InBev, the maker of Budweiser, the official beer of the tournament, for nearly 40 years.



However, there are observations that this situation will affect the contracts of both sides.



Aaron Solomon, chief legal analyst at Esquire Digital, an American marketing firm, told the New York Post, "Since selling beer at the stadium is an agreed upon matter, this is a clear breach of contract. There is no doubt about it."



However, experts believed that Budweiser would not end the sponsorship contract after a legal battle.



This is because when the contract is terminated, it becomes difficult to sponsor marketing in North and Central America, which is designated as the venue for the next tournament.



Conrad Weissek, a sports analyst at a data analysis and consulting company in the UK, told CNN in the US, "



"Going somewhere else this time (leaving FIFA) could be like paving the way for other beer brands," he explained.



Three days before this 'blitz ban' decision was made, the US Daily New York Times (NYT) reported that the Qatari government had ordered beer sales booths in the stadium to be moved out of sight.



At the same time, citing officials, he said that the brother of Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (Emir) led the change.



The Guardian explained that FIFA's decision also took into account the significant number of fans from the Gulf region and other Asian countries, where drinking culture is not familiar.



After all, as FIFA changed its policy with the opening of the World Cup just around the corner, fans visiting the stadium could no longer quench their thirst with beer.



With the ban on selling beer around the stadium, drinking is only allowed in Doha's 'fan area' and some hotels that serve alcohol to foreigners.



(Photo = Yonhap News)