Sober Euros: sales of low and no alcohol beer help drive £2.7bn spending spree

THE European Championships, kicking off in Germany tonight, are set to give the economy a £2.75 billion boost with sales of "no" and "low" alcohol expected to hit a record for a major tournament.

- Robert Dex

Euro 2024 gets underway at 8pm as Scotland face Germany in Munich, with the Tartan Army looking to make it beyond the group stage for the first time, despite competition from Switzerland and Hungary. England, whose first game is against Serbia on Sunday at 8pm, will also have to play Denmark and Slovenia and are among the favourites to be crowned champions alongside the host nation and beaten World Cup finalists France.

Tesco said it expected to sell 33 million packs of beer and cider over the coming month but was also predicting it would shift a record 5.5 million bottles and cans of "no" and "low" alcohol options. Whatever happens on the pitch, pundits are predicting fans will splash the cash for the duration of the tournament, which ends on July 14.

The men's Uefa Euro 2024 spending report predicts a UK audience of around 35.4 million, with almost half taking advantage of favourable kick-off times to watch from pubs, bars, restaurants and fan zones. That is in stark contrast to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar when just 6.7 million supporters watched from their local venues.