The government has confirmed that pubs wishing to stay open for England's potential last-16 match against Mexico on Monday, July 6, can only do so if they obtain special permission from their local council. The match, if England beat DR Congo in the round of 32 today (Wednesday, July 1), will kick off at 1am, falling outside the standard extended licensing hours.
Current Licensing Rules Do Not Cover 1am Kick-Offs
During the World Cup, the Home Office granted special permission for pubs to extend licensing hours to 1am, or 2am for late kick-offs. However, the current rules only allow a 2am closing time for matches that kick off between 9pm and 10pm. The Department for Communities and Local Government confirmed to the Express that the England v Mexico game would not qualify under these rules.
Councils Have Final Say on Late Opening
Instead, pubs must apply to their local council for a Temporary Event Notice (TEN) to open later. The government told the Express that Secretary of State for Communities Steve Reed has written to councils encouraging them to approve such applications. However, the final decision rests with local authorities, and some have already proved difficult.
According to the BBC, landlord Jason Cleary of The Hodcarrier in Leamington Spa said his application to stay open late was 'refused' because he 'didn't give five working days' notice' after submitting it on Monday. Warwick District Council clarified to the BBC that it was legally unable to consider TENs submitted outside the statutory five-working-day notice period. The council stressed it did not refuse the application but had no power to approve it because the submission was made with only four working days to go before the event, and the date of submission was not counted as a working day.
Potential Closing Time Could Extend to 3:30am
If a TEN is granted, pubs could potentially stay open as late as 3:30am to accommodate extra time and a possible penalty shoot-out. The government encourages councils to approve these notices to allow fans to watch the match in pubs.
