Football fans watching England's World Cup opener against Croatia are being warned they could be over the drink-drive limit the following morning.

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.

The warning comes as 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.

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”.

An infographic produced by AlcoSense shows that 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.

The company said many motorists 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.

The latest Department for Transport figures show that 260 people were killed in drink-drive crashes in 2023, while a total of 6,310 people were killed or injured in incidents involving motorists over the legal alcohol limit.

Mr Abbott added: "Just a small amount of alcohol in your system slows reaction times, inhibits judgement and reduces both concentration and co-ordination, increasing the likelihood of an accident.

"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. Leave the car at home, take alternative transport or use a personal breathalyser to check that you're clear before getting behind the wheel."

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16 June 2026