BBPA chief executive, Emma McClarkin, at the Cabbage Patch, Twickenham, with pub manager Stuart Green
The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) has predicted that seven million extra pints of beer will be sold in pubs during the Guinness Six Nations Rugby Championship. This will boost the sector by £27 million and give HMRC a windfall of £7.6m from extra beer duty and VAT.
In a survey by MatchPint, shared with the BBPA, more pub-going sports fans (43.12%) identified the Six Nations as the event they were most looking forward to over the 2019/20 winter period.
Driven by increased interest in rugby from the good runs of the home nations at the recent Rugby World Cup, MatchPint also forecast that the number of people searching for a pub to watch the tournament in will grow by 29.5%, compared to last year’s tournament.
One such pub is The Cabbage Patch, in Twickenham — the home of England rugby. A famous rugby pub in its own right, run by manager Stuart Green, The Cabbage Patch is showing all the Six Nations games and has been kitted out with flags, scarves and other rugby themed decorations.
It has also put up an Instagram wall in the pub for visitors to share their own pictures during the championship, and will also be hosting Q & A sessions with various former rugby players throughout the championship.
BBPA chief executive, Emma McClarkin, herself a passionate rugby supporter and former RFU employee, said: “There’s no better place to enjoy live sport on the telly than at the pub with friends and family, so it’s great to see so many rugby fans planning to watch the Six Nations at their local.
“With matches taking place at favourable times on the weekends, the Six Nations will be a welcome boost to our sector. We expect a boost of seven million pints of beer sold in pubs due to those watching the matches.”
