Hully’s rule is simple: every departure earns a farewell drink. It turns the knockout stage into a personal schedule of celebrations, disappointments and increasingly difficult sourcing missions.
The collection reportedly cost $335, but the real challenge was finding products from nations rarely represented in British shops. Some bottles came through international collectors, while others required unusual trades and personal connections.
That makes the project more than a novelty. Football supporters often mark tournaments with scarves, stickers or match tickets; Hully has built a liquid archive of the competition’s global reach.
The report says Iraq was particularly difficult, with one bottle acquired through a contact in Poland. Other gaps were filled by exchanges, including a rare English beer traded for a Qatari drink and a Panamanian beer swapped for a Saudi Arabian bottle.
Alcohol availability also shaped the collection. For Qatar and Saudi Arabia, Hully used non-alcoholic malt drinks, describing them as “as close to beer as you can get over there”.
That compromise reflects the varied cultures surrounding a global tournament. The football may be shared, but the traditions, restrictions and products attached to each country are not.
England’s upcoming match against Norway gives the ritual its most immediate twist. One of those two teams will be eliminated, meaning one bottle must be opened as the supporter’s next tournament farewell.
For neutral viewers, it is another fixture in a crowded World Cup schedule. For Hully, it is a decision already waiting on the shelf - and one that could carry a very different emotion depending on the result.
The next storyline is therefore clear: when England and Norway meet, the match will decide not only who stays alive, but which drink becomes part of Hully’s World Cup history.