Pubs and bars advertising Scotland’s World Cup matches despite not having extended licensing hours have been warned conditions. South Ayrshire Licencing Board chair, Councillor William Grant, and Licensing Standards Officer, Catrina Andrew, issued the warning after it was revealed that some premises had indicated they would be showing upcoming World Cup fixtures even though their licences may not allow them to remain open long enough for the matches to finish.
Monitoring Compliance
Speaking at the board’s latest meeting, Councillor Grant said officials would be monitoring compliance closely. He said: “We’ll be following all these up to make sure these people aren’t flouting the rules, because people have committed to these rules and came to the board and got these things passed, so that’s very important.”
Successful First Screenings
The warning came as Ms Andrew updated members on the successful operation of extended licensing hours for Scotland’s opening World Cup match. A number of premises across South Ayrshire were granted a 5am extension to allow supporters to watch the Haiti game, with no licensing issues reported. Ms Andrew said she had received positive feedback from operators and managers following the fixture and praised the responsible approach taken by local businesses.
However, she warned that upcoming Scotland matches present a different challenge. The national team’s next two World Cup fixtures kick off at 11pm UK time and, while some venues have been granted extensions allowing them to remain open until 2am, others remain restricted by their normal operating hours.
Licensing Laws Apply
Ms Andrew stressed that licensing laws still apply regardless of whether a match has finished. “If extended hours have not been granted, patrons must leave the premises at the end of core hours, whether the game is finished or not,” she said. She warned that many premises whose licences do not extend beyond 1am may be unable to legally show the entire match.
“For this reason, I would urge patrons to support venues who have ticketing and who have additional hours that have already been in place and have been granted by the board through extensions because that will allow them to have the best customer experience,” she said.
Customer Expectations
The licensing officer also cautioned that disappointment among customers expecting to watch a match through to the final whistle could create difficulties for premises and potentially undermine licensing objectives. Cllr Grant said the issue was particularly important given the length of modern football matches.
Referring to the England game earlier in the week, he noted that hydration breaks introduced into each game and lengthy stoppage times meant games were now lasting around two hours and 15 minutes. “I watched the first half of the England game last night and it was 55 minutes because they have a hydration break, and all games have a hydration break,” he said. “So it’s taken basically about two and a quarter hours for a game.” He warned that premises with a half-past-midnight terminal hour would likely only be able to show the first half before customers would have to leave.
Positive First Match
Despite the concerns over some venues’ advertising, Ms Andrew reported that Scotland’s opening match had passed without incident. She said most premises were not operating at full capacity and that the atmosphere differed significantly from a typical Saturday night. “It’s very different to a usual Saturday night, with most patrons drinking less, due to sitting and watching the game, and of course, their late terminal hour,” she said. Ms Andrew added that she was “very pleased” with the way South Ayrshire licence holders had handled the first World Cup fixture and said their approach would help inform future licensing decisions.
