Solihull pub pushes to screen England game after licence refusal

Adam Cook, operations manager at The Wharf Tavern, said more television screens and speakers had been put in ahead of the tournament

A landlord says his pub is facing losing thousands of pounds after being refused permission to show England's potential meeting with Mexico.

If Thomas Tuchel's squad make it through to the last 16 by beating DR Congo later, they will play the tournament's co-hosts in Mexico City on 6 July.

But the match will kick off at 01:00 BST, and The Wharf Tavern has been unable to get a Temporary Event Notice (TEN) licence to show it at that late hour, leaving operations manager Adam Cook frustrated.

Solihull Council said the licence was refused because the pub applied outside the specific working days condition required and there was "absolutely no wriggle room" under the law.

Licensing laws have already been relaxed to allow pubs to stay open beyond their usual hours.

Pubs can stay open until 01:00 BST for England matches in the knockout stages that kick off between 17:00 and 21:00 and until 02:00 for kick-offs between 21:00 and 22:00.

However, while this covers most scenarios, it does not help early morning kick-offs such as next week's game against Mexico.

After a recent refurbishment, Cook said more television screens and speakers had been added both inside and outside The Wharf Tavern, specifically for the tournament.

Showing the previous World Cup matches had "quadrupled" their sales, he added.

"We count on these sales to help us for the rest of the year," he explained.

"Pubs are at the heart of the community, football is a community event, it is terrible."

He added, it is a difficult time in the hospitality industry at the moment, especially for small pubs.

"We are fighting for every penny, with all the rising costs, we have all seen the headlines, it is hard but we are fighting back as much as we can".

In a post on social media, the pub said: "The Wharf will continue to stand up for our pub, our customers, and the role local pubs play in keeping communities alive. But these days this is getting harder and harder to do with rising costs, stricter rules."

TENs costs £21 each and on the Solihull Council website it says applications must be submitted no later than 10 working days prior to the event taking place, although late TENs are available for between five and nine days.

Cook added several other pubs have also had licences rejected, including The Hodcarrier in Leamington Spa, along with others in Shirley, in Solihull.

He said they have faced criticism for not applying earlier but applying for any eventuality, for all their pubs, would mean the money just added up.

Cook is hopeful they will be granted the license though.

"All of the MPs we have contacted have been brilliant, and they are appealing against the rejections," he added.

But the council said: ""Whilst we want everyone in Solihull to be able to enjoy England's World Cup run, and all our licensed venues to benefit from the boost it brings, we are bound by the law when it comes to granting licences for events like this."

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