Brace for bleary-eyed World Cup Britain! England matches kick off at 9pm at the earliest - while Scottish fans get a new bank holiday to recover

By SAM GREENHILL, THE CHIEF REPORTER Published: 23:01, 8 June 2026 | Updated: 23:11, 8 June 2026 The 'night-time World Cup' is set to leave Britain bleary-eyed when it kicks off this week. Employers are braced for mass sickies and yawning staff thanks to football matches being played so late. Millions of fans are expected to stay up into the small hours to cheer on England and Scotland – with widespread disruption expected in workplaces. The tournament, which begins on Thursday, is spread across six time zones in the USA, Canada and Mexico. England fans will have to wait until 9pm and 10pm for kick-offs in their first three games, while Scotland's first game has a 2am start time. Some 15,000 pubs in England and Wales and an estimated 3,000 in Scotland have applied for late licences to grant drinkers extra time during match nights.  Some pubs will be open until 5am, leaving bosses facing a sea of empty desks the next day. Employers across the UK are being urged to prepare for a surge in 'football sickies' during this summer's tournament, as research suggests millions of fans will sacrifice sleep to watch matches live. England fans celebrating a goal in the 2018 World Cup match between Sweden and England at the Rose and Crown pub, in Wimbledon, south London If England or Scotland – which has qualified for the first time in 28 years - progresses beyond the group stage to the knockout stages of the tournament, the Government has granted blanket permission to all pubs in England and Wales to stay open late. It means if a home nation is playing in the final, a semi-final, a quarter-final or matches in the rounds of 16 and 32, then pubs can keep serving until 1am or 2am depending on the kick-off time. Police have warned of drunken disorder and claim Home Office ministers ignored their advice to limit the free-for-all. But the Prime Minister has decreed that 'nothing brings us all together like a World Cup summer' and said 'red tape should not get in the way of fans enjoying the game with friends and local pubs doing a great trade'. Pubs have also received the go-ahead to serve 'al fresco' pints on pavements, with Sir Keir Starmer saying: 'A pavement pint in the sunshine discussing the agony of penalties and soaking up the atmosphere is what pubs are all about and we are backing them.'  Communities Secretary Steve Reed has told councils to 'show fun-police the red card' and approve applications by pubs to open late and serve pavement pints. England fans at BOXPark Wembley during a screening of the Euro 2024 semi-final match between England and Switzerland England fans at BOXPark Croydon in London during a screening of the Euro 2024 final between Spain and England Fans in Edinburgh watching the Euro 2020 Scotland Vs Czech Republic match Scotland fans will enjoy a special bank holiday next Monday to allow them to stay up late for their team's first World Cup clash. King Charles approved the national day off for June 15 as the Tartan Army kick-start their first campaign in the tournament since 1998. Scotland play Caribbean minnows Haiti in Boston, which is five hours behind British summer time. The kick-off was selected for 9pm local time on Saturday, translating to 2am on Sunday June 14 for fans hoping to watch live. First Minister John Swinney suggested a new bank holiday for Monday to give fans time to recover which was approved by Buckingham Palace. Some 3,000 pubs are expected to screen the fixture. Unlike England and Wales, which have automatic permission to serve late on match nights during the knockout stages, Scottish pubs have to apply. Many Scottish licensing boards have already approved extensions. In the Highlands, pubs with permission to show televised sport can stay open until 30 minutes after the final whistle for Scotland's group games and any later Scotland matches. In Clackmannanshire, a general extension applies to all Scotland matches - group stage and beyond - allowing premises to remain open for the duration of the match and 15 minutes afterwards. In Stirling, the licensing board approved extensions for World Cup matches that kick off during core opening hours, including Scotland's group games. After the opening game, Scotland play Morocco in Boston on Friday June 19 with an 11pm kick-off UK time, and then Brazil in Miami on Wednesday June 24, with a 10pm start time. Industry bosses have welcomed the relaxed hours. Michael Kill, the chief executive of the Night-Time Industries Association, called it a 'welcome boost', while Emma McClarkin, head of the British Beer and Pub Association, said the extension would allow people to 'come together, boost community spirit and enjoy a summer of sport'. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: 'If our boys are on the pitch, we want our fans to stay in the pub.' Research by YouGov found that more than half of people in the UK planning to follow the tournament intend to watch matches live rather than catch up later. Among those fans, 26 per cent said they would stay up beyond 11pm to watch games, while 12 per cent would tune in for fixtures kicking off in the small hours. With 48 teams, the 2026 World Cup is the biggest ever staged. But most of the matches start late in the evenings UK time or well into the night. A combination of sweltering temperatures in southern American cities and Mexico, and the demands of television networks for matches to suit global audiences, means some games kick off at 3am UK time or even later. Thousands of Australians living in Britain are expected to follow their nation's opening match against Turkey at a punishing 5am next Sunday. As football fever builds, employers are already reporting a rise in annual leave requests around key matches. According to HR and absence management software provider BrightHR, the day after England's first match - against Croatia on Wednesday next week - is the most booked off day for over-60s for the whole tournament. The firm forecasts that employers will pay over £94million in sick pay during the tournament and that at least 3.6million sick days will be taken. After their opening match in Dallas next week, England play Ghana in Boston on Tuesday June 23, with a 9pm kick-off. After that, it is Panama in New Jersey on Saturday June 27, starting at 10pm, both UK times. Because these games are in the group stage, there is no blanket licencing permission, meaning individual pubs have to apply to open late. If England win Group L, they will then play at 5pm UK time in Atlanta on Wednesday July 1. That night, pubs in England and Wales can automatically stay open until 1am. If the team goes on to the last-16, the kick-off is at 1am UK time on Monday, July 6. In that instance, pubs wishing to show the game in full would have to apply in the normal way to their local council for a Temporary Event Notice enabling them to open all night. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. 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