Queensland venues granted special trading hours for Socceroos' World Cup clash against Egypt

Queensland pubs and clubs will have the opportunity to open in the early hours of Saturday morning to screen the Socceroos' Round of 32 World Cup match against Egypt, under a trial change to liquor licensing rules.

The temporary arrangement allows eligible venues to apply to the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation for approval to trade between 3am and 7am, coinciding with the 4am AEST kick-off of the clash between Tony Popovic's side and an Egyptian team led by Mo Salah in Texas.

Attorney-General Deb Frecklington said pubs, hotels and community clubs wanting to take advantage of the extended hours needed to lodge applications by 2pm Thursday, with venues requiring pre-approval from the regulator, according to ABC News.

She said the arrangement was tightly tied to the purpose of the trading window, stating "The primary purpose of trading must be to watch the game," and confirmed standard obligations remained in force, noting "All the requirements of the liquor licensing and the RSA (responsible service of alcohol) will be and has to be complied with."

Frecklington also signalled scope for similar arrangements down the track, should the Socceroos progress or for other major sporting fixtures, telling ABC News "Let's wait and see and cheer on our Socceroos on Saturday morning." She added the measure was expected to be taken up selectively rather than across the board: "We anticipate that not every hotel or club will utilise this extension of a license, it will only be those venues that are probably well known to watch games when the Socceroos are playing."

Clubs Queensland chief executive Kelly Egan said interest from venues had been substantial, pointing to four "decent-sized" venues already flagging demand as an early indicator of broader appetite among operators, ABC News reported. She said "I know four doesn't sound like much, but if it's four, there's another 40 or 50 having the same conversation," adding that venues were already managing capacity pressure: "They're turning people away, they've got people queued up constantly."

Venues with unresolved licensing issues or outstanding fees will be excluded from the extended trading arrangement. Frecklington said the measure was designed to reward compliant operators, noting "It is restricted to the people who constantly do the right thing." 

Minister for Youth Sam O'Connor said the initiative was intended to support both fans and the broader night-time economy, telling ABC News, "It's the sort of measure that we're working through to make sure that Queenslanders can make the most of our nightlife economy, to make sure, particularly that small businesses get opportunities that they wouldn't otherwise have." He added the change was ultimately about community access to major sporting moments: "But most importantly, it's about making sure our Queenslanders can go to their local and to back the Socceroos."

Jonathan Jackson, 1^st July 2026