Stella Artois lets fans expense World Cup beers as workday drinks

Stella Artois is trying to turn weekday World Cup matches into a bar business opportunity, putting $100,000 of its marketing budget behind a “Work From Bar” promotion built around reimbursing fans for matchday drinks. The hook is simple enough for a busy lunch crowd: fans 21 and older can buy a Stella Artois or Stella Artois 0.0 at a local bar or pub during weekday matches, then submit the receipt for reimbursement.

For bars and breweries, the real story is not the reimbursement gimmick itself. It is the daypart Stella Artois is trying to create. FIFA’s World Cup 2026 schedule runs from June 11 to July 19, with 104 matches across 16 host cities in Canada, Mexico and the United States, and many of those games fall during U.S. working hours. That gives operators a shot at turning slow weekday traffic into a new watch-and-work crowd, but only if the room is ready for it.

Stella Artois is making that point literal with a Work From Bar HQ in New York opening June 28 at Brookfield Place, the same day the knockout rounds begin. The pop-up is being pitched as a full sports bar with TVs, outlets and a bookable conference room, which tells operators exactly what the brand thinks a successful “work from bar” setup needs: reliable power, strong Wi-Fi, enough staffing to cover a weekday rush, and food service that can handle people staying past one drink.

Anheuser-Busch named Stella Artois a Proud Sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2026™ back on March 12 and said its tournament plans are meant to engage fans in stadiums, bars and at-home watch parties. The company is also pairing the promotion with a World Cup sweeps page offering hundreds of prizes, including Stella Artois x FIFA World Cup 26™ merchandise, David Beckham-signed items and a year’s supply of Stella Artois.

The brand is leaning hard on its long bar-first identity to make the pitch feel natural. Stella Artois traces its origins to the Den Hoorn brewery in Leuven, Belgium, founded in 1366, and its chalice has long been part of the brand’s premium drinking ritual. That heritage gives “Work From Bar” a clearer lane than a one-off stunt. If bars can actually function as temporary offices during midday World Cup matches, Stella Artois may have found a way to turn a tournament schedule into a repeatable weekday daypart.