Home Advantage This World Cup
It’s a home win! A whopping 83 per cent of Brits will shun the pub later this month for the cheaper, more comfortable option of watching World Cup matches at home on the sofa, finds online supermarket Ocado.
Keeping the home support satiated, Ocado.com and England Women’s Captain Faye White are launching a unique World Recipe Challenge. 32 international recipes, submitted by customers to Ocado’s extensive online recipe library, will battle it out during the World Cup (June 11 to July 11) for the most page views and ingredient downloads.
All recipes - one representing each competing football nation - offer a one-click, ready-to-buy ingredient aisle, and handy print-out-and-keep index card with simple instructions and tips, encouraging people to stay at home during the footy and cook up global treats for friends and family.
Pub Versus Pad
Watching World Cup matches down the ‘local’ will cost each person on average £63.74 more than staying at home (£94.75 compared to £31.01.) Brits watching the tournament from their sofa will spend an average of £17.12 on alcohol and £13.12 on food, compared to £61.20 on alcohol and £33.55 on food when at the pub.
Brits will, on average, watch 11 games at home - over double the amount of games they’re planning to watch at the pub (5 games). 67 per cent of Brits prefer home to pub, with 33 per cent of those suggesting that they can eat and drink whatever they please and 45 per cent raising cost as a major factor - unsurprising, perhaps, in such turbulent economic times.
Two Pints Of Lager And A Packet Of Crisps
As a nation of couch potatoes, it’s no surprise that over 85 million packets of crisps are expected to be eaten over the World Cup, washed down by over 85 million pints of lager - enough to fill nearly 20 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
With pizzas, chocolate and crisps topping the ‘spectator’s’ menu, the average Brit will consume an extra 340 calories per World Cup match and then worry about gaining between 4 and 5lbs.
Waistlines and wallets will be hit even harder if England is successful, with 44 per cent admitting that they will eat and drink more following any England victories.
During the last World Cup, Ocado saw a 78 per cent increase in sales of tortilla chips and 116 per cent increase in dip sales.
Lager sales rose by 53 per cent and champagne by 23 percent, as did sales of Barbecue food and equipment (272 per cent.) However, a 17 per cent fall in ‘smoking cessation’ products suggests fans were too stressed about their team to consider quitting cigarettes.
‘The Social’ Aspect
40 per cent of Brits believe the tournament will improve their social life, but only one in five (22 per cent) will be hosting World Cup parties at home; 55 per cent intend on making matches a much more intimate affair by watching them with no more than three mates.
42 per cent of Brits will devote between two and three hours a day to watching football - that’s up to 96 hours over the four World Cup weeks.
Faye White, England Women’s Captain, will also be watching the World Cup at home: "My life is geared around football - either playing it or watching it, and I can’t wait for the tournament to start. I’ve already invited my mates round, Chez White is the place to watch the boys play, and hopefully win."
Jason Gissing, co-founder of Ocado, adds: "What with HD TV and the kitchen close at hand, it’s no wonder football fans are choosing to watch the World Cup from the comfort of their own homes.
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