NIQ’s exclusive Daily Drinks Tracker, powered by CGA intelligence, shows sales in the week to Saturday 6 June were 1.5% down on the equivalent period in 2025. Over the following week to Saturday 13 June, the gap widened to leave trading 5.1% behind last year.
It is a disappointing reversal to a better fortnight in the second half of May, when sales finished just ahead year-on-year. The Daily Drinks Tracker has now recorded negative growth in 15 of the first 23 weeks of 2026. It leaves pubs, bars and suppliers pinning hopes on brighter weather and a boost from the men’s football World Cup in the rest of June and July.
Sales in the first week of June trended in line with the weather, with bursts of sunshine in some places boosting daily takings before cooler and wetter weather moved in to dampen footfall. The periods of higher temperatures made it a good week for soft drinks, with sales up 3.0% year-on-year, and a reasonable one for cider (up 0.9%) and beer (down 0.2%) as consumers sought refreshment.
The second week of the month was impacted by tough comparisons with a sunny mid-June in 2025. This hampered sales of beer (down 3.1%), cider (down 9.4%) and soft drinks (down 5.0%).
It was a much more negative fortnight for spirits (down by 8.7% and 9.7%) and wine (down by 4.7% and 6.3%). However, the week finished on a better note, with interest in Scotland’s first World Cup fixture helping to keep sales virtually level year-on-year on Saturday 13 June.
Rachel Weller, NIQ powered by CGA’s commercial lead, UK & Ireland, said: “The first half of June continues the pattern of a flat 2026 for pubs, bars and suppliers. It’s yet another reminder of how drinks sales are very closely pegged to the weather, and while there have been sunny patches the conditions have worked against operators in many parts of the country over the Spring and Summer. Pubs and bars with TV screens will now be looking forward to a big upswing in footfall from the World Cup, and hoping for a successful tournament for England and Scotland to keep people visiting.”
The Daily Drinks Tracker provides analysis of sales at managed licensed premises across Britain and is part of NIQ powered by CGA’s suite of research services delivering in-depth data on category, supplier and brand rate of sale performance.
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