Scottish brewery and pub chain BrewDog has unveiled a tongue-in-cheek ‘anti-sponsorship’ campaign of the upcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Announcing itself as “the proud anti-sponsor of the World F*cup”, BrewDog’s campaign will run across prominent out-of-home locations alongside posters and print ads.
The 2022 World Cup has caused heavy controversy since the hosting rights were awarded to Qatar in 2010, not least because of the Gulf State’s poor human rights record – with its treatment of migrant workers (at least 6,500 of which have died building new stadia for the tournament) and LGBT people causing global concern.
In a further show of solidarity with marginalised groups in Qatar, BrewDog has pledged to donate all net profits generated from sales of its Lost Lager beer in the UK during the tournament to charities fighting human rights abuses in the oil-rich state.
A statement put out by BrewDog read :”Football is meant to be for everyone. But in Qatar, homosexuality is illegal, floggings are an acceptable form of punishment, and it is OK for 6,500 workers to die building a stadium.”
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The brewer added that it was “kicking off about this and putting its money where its mouth is”. The Aberdeenshire-based brand’s CEO, James Watt continued to hammer the point home, saying: “We’re proud to be launching Brewdog as an anti-sponsor of the World F*Cup.
“To be clear we love football, we just don’t love corruption and abuse. So join us. Let’s raise a glass to the players. To the fans. To free speech.”
Clearly unafraid of courting controversy, BrewDog itself came under fire earlier this year, when a BBC Scotland investigation team spoke to more than 15 ex-BrewDog staff members who accused Watt of perpetrating a toxic work culture and behaving inappropriately towards young female employees.
Watt denied all the allegations made in the programme and has faced no legal action at this stage.
