Alcoholic Drinks in Western Europe

Delivery

This report comes in PPT.

Key findings

Olympics likely to boost sales in France in 2024

Sales of alcoholic drinks are likely to have been boosted in Italy in 2021 when the national team won the delayed EURO 2020 men’s soccer tournament. While the rugby union World Cup does not seem to have had a similar effect in host country France in 2023, the 2024 Paris Olympics are expected to help provide this country with its best annual growth of the forecast period.

HW concerns driving demand for low-ABV and non-alcoholic products

Although inflation was impacting purchasing power for many consumers at the end of the review period and moving into the forecast period, a premiumisation trend continued to be seen across much of the Western European region. Consumers have continued to demonstrate their interest in more premium products in line with the concept of “drinking less, but better”.

Despite the difficult economic backdrop, premiumisation continues to be seen

Health and wellness is an ongoing trend in alcoholic drinks in much of Western Europe, with some consumers keen to switch zero-alcohol versions of popular alcoholic drinks and others wanting to cut their alcohol intake, opting for products with lower ABVs. As players look to meet this demand, AB InBev has announced a policy of making 20% of its beer portfolio non-alcoholic by 2025 while Asahi plans for 20% of its portfolio to be alcohol-free by 2030.

On-trade will drive unit volume growth over 2022-2027

The on-trade will drive growth in total unit volume sales over the forecast period. Still recovering from the massive hit it took in 2020, this channel will see positive growth throughout 2022-2027, albeit at a slower rate than in the last two years of the review period. The off-trade, meanwhile, will record a stagnating CAGR, although sales will remain above their pre-pandemic levels thanks to the demand spike this channel enjoyed in 2020.