No matches, no problem: Manchester pubs cash in on World Cup fever
Pubs across the city see increased benefit during tournament
Pubs and venues across Manchester have reported a rise in custom during the opening week of the 2026 World Cup, as late-night kick-offs drive football fans into city-centre bars.
With fan zones, late-night screenings and dedicated events across the city, pubs and bars are hoping the tournament will bring extra footfall throughout the group stages and beyond.
Visit Manchester has promoted the city as a place to watch the World Cup, highlighting pubs, bars and venues showing matches across the tournament.
But with late kick-offs, licensing pressures and uncertain visitor numbers, the question for hospitality businesses is whether World Cup interest will create lasting revenue or only a short-term spike in sales.
With the World Cup being hosted across 16 Venues across Mexico, Canada and the United States, the kickoff times are later in the day. The earliest kickoff is 5pm bst
The time difference ranges from five to eight hours behind Greenwich Mean Time, yet most major games will be played on the eastern side of the US. The final will take place at the traditional 3 pm kick-off time at the New York New Jersey Stadium, with a UK kick-off time of 8 pm.
Josh Woodall, business director at The Brotherhood of Pursuits and Pastimes, a chain of pubs with venues in Manchester and Leeds, said major tournaments usually bring a clear uplift in trade.
“The tournaments are good for the company, good for business,” he said.
“We’re taking more money each week because we’re showing more games.”
Demand has been particularly high for matches involving the home nations, with Brotherhood reporting strong bookings in both Manchester and Leeds.
“So Scotland had a 2am game on Sunday morning, and we were fully booked, and the venue was full,” Woodall said.
“We were at capacity in Leeds and Manchester.
“We’ve had good turnouts for all of the midweek games since Thursday, when it kicked off last week.
“We’ve been more or less fully booked for England now for maybe two months.”
England’s group-stage fixtures are expected to play a key role in the night-time economy, with all three matches scheduled for the evening for UK audiences.
Woodall said The Brotherhood of Pursuits and Pastimes would continue to accept walk-ins where possible, despite high demand for bookings.
“Despite being fully booked, we are still letting in walk-ins on the day, and we will just do that throughout the tournament until we hit capacity on those days,” he said.
“We love having customers in, and they are a huge benefit to our business.”
With England set to face Croatia tonight in their opening World Cup match, The Brotherhood and other Manchester venues are preparing for another busy night as the city looks to make the most of the tournament from thousands of miles away.