Road safety campaigners and police are urging football fans planning to watch World Cup matches to leave their cars and motorcycles at home.

The warning is that spikes in drink and drug driving incidents often accompany major sporting events.

With fans often travelling to watch games on TV with friends, high spirits and increased temptation can prove to be own goals for personal and public safety. 

Drinking and dribbling

UK fans are expected to drink almost 60 million pints during the tournament, equivalent to 1.5 million pints every day.

Previous tournaments have demonstrated the scale of football-related drinking.

During the 2022 World Cup, pubs sold an average of 436 pints on the day of England’s opening match against Iran – around 50% above normal levels.

England matches during Euro 2024 generated around 90% more pints pulled than a typical trading day in many pubs.

Dangerous tactics

Authorities across the UK continue to report worrying levels of impaired driving, with alcohol- and drug-related crashes remaining a significant contributor to deaths and serious injuries on the nation’s roads.

Newly released figures from the North East show that in 2025, drivers impaired by drugs featured more frequently than drivers impaired by alcohol, with drugs featuring in 80% of impaired collisions, compared with 63% featuring alcohol, and 44% featuring both. 

According to Department for Transport data, nearly one in five fatal road collisions in Great Britain during 2023 involved at least one drink- or drug-related factor.

These figures show that 19.6% of fatal crashes had impairment linked to alcohol or drugs, with incidents most likely to occur during evenings and weekends.

Road safety experts say international football tournaments can create additional risks, as fans gather in pubs, clubs and homes to watch matches, often consuming alcohol before attempting to drive home.

Tactics and statistics

National Police Chiefs’ Council figures from the 2024 festive enforcement campaign revealed that officers carried out almost 60,000 roadside drink and drug tests across the UK, resulting in 6,931 arrests.

While fewer than 10% of roadside breath tests were positive for alcohol, more than 42% of drug wipes returned positive results.

The growing prevalence of drug driving is also raising alarm.

Analysis of government data found that fatalities linked to drug driving increased by 164% between 2014 and 2023, while collisions attributed to drug-impaired motorists rose by 170% over the same period (though this saw the introduction of new drug driving laws and therefore accurate reporting).

Recent figures suggest major football tournaments can also coincide with increases in alcohol- and drug-related offending.

Home Office statistics showed football-related arrests in England and Wales rose by 14% during the 2023-24 season, driven in part by Euro 2024, with more than 400 arrests linked to England national team matches.

Drug possession offences also increased significantly during the period.

The hangover

With pubs allowed to remain open until 1am for England’s 9pm kick-off on Wednesday, road safety campaigners say many supporters may underestimate how long alcohol remains in the body.

A fan drinking five pints of 4% beer over the course of the evening and leaving the pub at 1am could still have alcohol in their system until around lunchtime on Thursday.

Hunter Abbott from personal breathalyser firm AlcoSense said:  “Many fans will assume that because they’ve had a night’s sleep, they’ll be fine to drive to work or take their children to school the following morning.  That’s not necessarily the case.

“Five pints of average-strength lager contain around 11.5 units of alcohol.  The final whistle may have blown, but your body needs to allow for ‘extra time’ to process that alcohol”.  

Five pints of 4% beer can take around 12.5 hours to clear, although this depends on factors such as weight, sex and drinking pattern.

Many motorists also remain unaware that alcohol can impair driving ability even when they are below the legal limit.

A recent AlcoSense poll found that more than a third of people (36%) believe their ability to drive is only impaired if they are actually over the drink-drive limit.

However, research shows drivers are 13 times more likely to be involved in a fatal crash at the current legal limit in England and Wales than when sober.

Even at just 10mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood – one eighth of the legal limit – the risk of a fatal collision is around 37% higher than for a completely sober driver.

Mr Abbott added:  “If you’ve been drinking while watching the match, whether at home or in the pub, don’t assume you’re safe to drive the following morning. “

Penalty shoot-out

Donna Jones, Police and Crime Commissioner for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, said there is “never an excuse” for getting behind the wheel while impaired.

“Challenge those you believe to be impaired. Report them to the police if you’re concerned. It only takes a split second for tragedy to strike,” she said during the launch of a recent anti-drink and drug driving campaign.

Chief Superintendent Sam Donaldson of the Police Service of Northern Ireland delivered a similar warning, saying drink and drug driving “drastically increases the chances of causing a collision” and that “it only takes one drink” to have devastating consequences.

Campaigners are encouraging supporters to plan ahead by using public transport, taxis, designated drivers or walking where possible.

Motorcyclists are also being reminded that alcohol and drugs can severely impair balance, coordination and reaction times.

With millions expected to tune in to World Cup fixtures over the coming weeks, police say the message is simple: enjoy the football, celebrate responsibly and never drive under the influence of drink or drugs.