AB InBev and Qatar's World Cup

Qatar has heavy restrictions on alcohol sales. Should AB InBev have backed out earlier to be respectful to local culture?

AB InBev renewed its sponsorship with FIFA’s World Cup after knowing Qatar would host in 2022. I imagine that those at AB InBev would have cited this as a risk for their investment. While Qatar has made exceptions to its strict no-drinking culture, namely allowing bars within hotels, AB InBev needed to understand this as a risk, especially since it is illegal to be drunk in public in Qatar. The nature of offering beer at a sporting venue would mean that a percentage of those enjoying the alcoholic beverages would be breaking the law. It is not reasonable to believe that public intoxication would not occur. Before signing this extension, a SWOT analysis could have prevented today’s situation if the threat of this scenario outweighed the marketing opportunity. From my perspective, AB InBev should not have agreed to sponsor this year’s World Cup tournament and shared their reasoning was to be respectful of the local culture.

The article states they have shipped the majority of the stock, do you keep shipping the remainder or cancel shipments? Why?

In this situation, AB InBev should hedge and freeze future shipments to Qatar. If, as things develop over the next few days and weeks, there is a reason to believe demand will reach previous expectations, then it makes sense to fulfill the original shipment. The organization needs to be dynamic and reallocate its stock to markets where sales can be generated. The potential risk of not capturing sales in paying markets in the hope of reclaiming the anticipated market at the World Cup is too significant. You must pivot and earn sales where you understand the opportunity.