Extended Opening Hours to be considered for 2026 World Cup

The Orkney Islands Area Licensing Board will next week consider whether to grant extended opening hours for local pubs and venues during this summer’s FIFA World Cup.

The tournament, taking place from 11 June to 19 July across Mexico, Canada and the United States, will see Scotland play in the World Cup finals for the first time since 1998.

Due to significant time zone differences, some matches - including Scotland’s opening game against Haiti in Boston at 2am on Sunday 14 June (UK time) - will kick off during the early hours of the morning, after pubs have usually already closed.

The Licensing Board is being asked to decide whether to introduce a general extension of on‑sale licensed hours during the tournament. This could apply to:

·     All World Cup matches,

·     Only Scotland games, or

·     Matches involving all of the home nations.

Board members will also determine whether any extension should apply to all on‑sale premises, or only to venues that have televised sport listed in their operating plans.

Similar extensions have already been approved by Licensing Boards in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen, with some allowing premises to remain open until 30 minutes after the final whistle of any live match being shown.

If Orkney’s Licensing Board opts not to introduce a general extension, premises would still be able to apply individually for extended hours. However, this could lead to higher workloads for businesses and the Licensing Service, and the tight turnaround of match scheduling - particularly beyond the group stages - may make it difficult for some applications to be processed in time.

The preferred option presented to Board members is to grant a general extension, which would minimise administration for both businesses and Council staff while ensuring premises can plan ahead for key matches.

A national bank holiday has also been approved for Monday 15 June, following Scotland’s historic return to the World Cup finals - another factor being considered in the Board’s decision-making.

The Licensing Board will make its determination at its meeting on 5 March 2026. Should any general extension be approved, notice will be issued to licence holders and publicised in line with statutory requirements.

Within the Orkney Islands area there are 37 premises licensed for on-sales which have televised sport included in their operating plans and 34 on-sale premises which do not include televised sport.

The Board has previously granted general extensions of hours in connection with HM The Queen’s Diamond and Platinum Jubilee Celebration weekends and for HM The King’s Coronation weekend, during June 2012, June 2022 and May 2023 respectively.