Marston’s Reports Strong Trading Thanks to World Cup Boost and New Sports Format

Marston’s PLC has reported a strong trading performance driven by England’s World Cup run and its new “Grandstand” sports-pub format, with the group confirming it is on track to hit full-year profit expectations and could begin returning cash to shareholders next year.

In a trading update covering the 42 weeks to 18 July 2026, the pub operator, which runs more than 1,300 sites nationwide, said England matchdays delivered like-for-like sales growth of 22%, while its purpose-built Grandstand venues saw sales surge by around 170% year-on-year during those fixtures.

The 36 Grandstand conversions completed so far have generated year-to-date like-for-like sales growth of approximately 30%, making the format the standout performer across the estate. Buoyed by the results, Marston’s confirmed it will significantly accelerate the rollout in the coming year, with around 100 further Grandstand conversions planned for FY2027.

Despite the peak-time strength, overall like-for-like sales across the group were down 1.6% year-to-date, as softer trading during off-peak periods offset the World Cup-fuelled gains.

The company also pointed to growing digital engagement with customers, noting that higher-value Order & Pay sales rose 45% year-on-year, alongside sustained strong guest reputation scores.
On profitability, Marston’s said continued margin progression and tight cost control gave the board confidence in meeting full-year market expectations, which are based on company-compiled forecasts for FY2026 underlying profit before tax of £78.5 million. The group said it now expects to hit the EBITDA margin expansion target set out at its October 2024 Capital Markets Day well ahead of schedule, having delivered more than 200 basis points of margin expansion over the past two years.

Looking ahead, Marston’s said its priority remains investment in the new pub formats, but confirmed that shareholder returns are an important part of its capital allocation strategy. The board expects pre-IFRS16 leverage to fall to around 4x by the time of its FY2026 preliminary results, at which point it plans to launch a shareholder returns programme, expected to take the form of share buybacks subject to market conditions, running alongside the accelerated investment in new formats.

Justin Platt, chief executive of Marston’s PLC, said the pub estate had delivered a strong start to the summer, describing the World Cup period as another reminder of the community pub’s role as “the place the nation comes together to cheer the moments that matter.” He said the Grandstand format continued to perform ahead of expectations and that the accelerated investment programme was building further trading momentum while improving the guest experience across the estate.

Platt added that a clear strategy, disciplined cost control and continued investment in new formats left the group well positioned for the summer trading period ahead, and that progress on reducing leverage meant Marston’s was well placed to resume shareholder returns in FY2027.