SOCCER FANS DISLIKE OFFICIAL WORLD CUP BEER

By Tokunbo Ojo, Special to CBC Sports Online

COLOGNE - Although it is normal for sports fans to have a couple of beers inside the stadium during and after the game, it is not so much the case at this World Cup.

Budweiser is the World Cup official beer that is being served in the 12 stadiums, but according to some fans drinking Bud is akin to drinking paint thinner.

"This [Bud] is just the worst beer you could imagine," said Johannes Schnitter, who recently launched a website that is calling for a boycott of Budweiser beer at the stadiums. "It is an insult to your tongue."

Schnitter is not alone in her campaign against Budweiser, which many Germans call "spulwasser" (dishwater in English). Other angry fans have also put up websites and blogs and a cross-section of media and politicians are lending their support to the outcry of the fans.

Bavarian politician Franz Maget, who also described Budweiser as the worst beer in the world, urged the local organizing committee to take action.

"We have a duty to public welfare and must not poison visitors to the World Cup," he said.

Having paid $40 million US to FIFA for the exclusive alcohol rights at the World Cup, Anheuser-Busch, the brewer of Budweiser, enjoys a near monopoly of beer sales inside the World Cup stadiums.

However, Anheuser-Busch compromised by allowing a German beer, Bit, in the stadiums on the condition that it be served in unmarked cups. It was a compromise that had to be reached because the American brewer would not be able to use the name "Bud" in Germany after a German court ruled that it infringed on the brand name of Bitburger, brewer of Bit.

Anheuser-Busch, which aggressively markets its product as the "King of Beers," has been involved with the World Cup since 1986. Last April, Anheuser-Busch had its World Cup corporate sponsorship extended to 2014.

"This deal means that by 2014 Budweiser will have been the official beer at eight consecutive FIFA World Cup finals," said Sepp Blatter, FIFA's President.

However, a study just released by Berlin-based Landau Media Monitoring group shows that Anheuser-Busch is getting the most negative coverage of all the 2006 World Cup sponsors in the German media.

The negative media reports and criticism of the fans aren't bothering the company. According to Tony Ponturo, Anheuser-Busch's vice-president for global media and sport marketing, there is no cause for alarm because the disdain is not as serious it appears.

"It's a small vocal group," he said. "We know that many Germans don't like the American lager taste. But in the late 70s in the U.S., people said beer drinkers would never accept light beer, and today it is 45 per cent of the category.

"People's tastes change. We know Bud is not for everybody, but we think it's responsible to provide people a choice. We are respectful of people's position and want to give them an option."

While some fans are taking the Bud option inside the stadium, others are making their way to the local bars, pubs and restaurants outside the stadium to enjoy German beer. There are almost 500 brands of beers being brewed in about 1,270 German breweries.

"This is Germany. They have a lot of good beers here," said Michal Hosek, a Czech who came solely to see this country's game against Ghana. "Germany and Czech Republic have the best beers in the world."