The Middle Eastern country is hosting the world's biggest football tournament,but there has been increasing speculation over whether fans and international spectators will be allowed to drink alcohol in the stadium due to the stadium's strict regulations banning the sale and-consumption of alcohol.
According to the Guardian, unnamed senior FIFA officials have confirmed that alcohol will be banned from the tournament for the first time in ten years.
FIFA itself has yet to issue a statement on the matter , but officials confirmed that its decision to join the Saudi government was based on"lessons learned" from the 2017 World Cup. Prior to the World Cup, the Qatari government initially permitted the sale of alcohol in stadiums and certain venues, but later allowed fans to sell alcohol at the venue, with sales prohibited.
This situation has reportedly caused a drop in-alcohol sales and caused millions of dollars in losses-to the beer company, which is FIFA's main sponsored partner. The sports community wants to avoid-repeating the mistakes made by hosting countries.
