Digital features calendar 2026

Every year, the tastebuds of your customers change to whatever the latest trends are – and it can often be your chefs putting those in place to start with.

As food evolution gets stronger at pubs all the time, The MA looks at what is trending now and what is likely to be throughout 2026.

We’ll hear from experts in the field and some of the best in the pub game when it comes to dining to uncover what to put on your menus.

Send editorial submissions to Michelle Perrett and Gary Lloyd.

Tech is transforming the pub and bar industry, offering smarter ways to boost productivity and streamline operations.

With labour costs rising, tech could provide many solutions to a host of issues across any pub or bar and you need to make sure your site is not missing out.

Whether it’s table booking, smarter kitchens or rotas that work for you and your employees, technology has the answers to plenty of conundrums.

By embracing innovations, pubs and bars can cut costs, improve margins and deliver faster, more reliable service in an increasingly competitive market.

Send editorial submissions to Fiona Griffiths and Gary Lloyd.

The cider market in pubs is evolving rapidly, driven by changing consumer preferences and a surge in premium and craft offerings.

But the mainstay cider brands will always have a place at the bar so how should you populate your offer?

Here, we look at the demand for traditional apple ciders, flavoured variants, low-alcohol options and locally sourced brands.

Is cider for an ageing crowd or is a younger clientele being targeted – we have advice that will help fulfil all aspects and categories across the board.

OK, spring isn’t quite here yet but it will be soon enough and even if you can’t get your garden open quite yet, there’s always time for a cider and the feature will help unpick how to market it the best way possible.

Send editorial submissions to Phil Mellows and Gary Lloyd.

Pub operators are reliant on having great staff to make their sites run flawlessly and to help increase sales.

Well-trained staff, whether they be front or back-of-house teams, are essential to the cause and in this report we look at the possible roles that need filling at any pub or bar and the skills they require.

Minimum wage laws mean the hospitality sector has to weigh up the demand for great service alongside how they need to cut their cloth to keep the operation running.

We’ll also be looking at the methods needed when recruiting and how to make sure you get the right candidates on board.

Plus, we’ll delve into how technology can help in recruiting and training, and its vital use in scheduling working rotas and its use within all job roles needed in a pub or bar.

No external submissions.

The men’s football World Cup is taking place in Mexico, Canada and the US so that means matches will kick off later for the UK so pubs could be quids in if they get their offer right.

Here we look at the days and times of the key matches involving already qualified England and Scotland plus the potential inclusion of Wales or Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland. The qualification of Wales or Northern Ireland will be known (but was not at the time of writing) after Wales play Bosnia & Herzegovina and Northern Ireland face Italy with the winners of each match facing each other in a final.

While Republic of Ireland must beat Czech Republic and then see off either Denmark or North Macedonia in a final.

The MA also looks at some of the best sports pubs across the country to gain some vital knowledge in how the very best get results when it comes to perfect screenings of football matches along with maximising the finals with their food and drinks offers plus how they get customers in and spending money before matches and keeping them in after matches – if time allows.

We also look at the legislation surrounding late kick-offs such as Aberdeen City Council in Scotland, allowing a blanket 3am licence for pubs to allow for later kick-offs.

We also ask expert pubs about their audio-visual equipment to get tips on getting the most out of your set-up.

Send editorial submissions to Matt Eley and Gary Lloyd

Wine has suffered in terms of sales at pubs in recent times but with the right offer, any pub can turn this segment into a goldmine. Here, we look at some of the statistics to show that is the case.

There are plenty of pubs that make an excellent trade with their wine offer and here we talk to some of the best to help shed a light on what your pub can do to improve or even begin its wine journey.

We talk to some operators who are making wine one of, if not THE highlight, of their business and gaining traction – whether it be through wine specialisation or the ability to blend wines with food-led occasions.

We also eye the potential for low & no wines in pubs, which has become more and more popular as time goes by.

Send editorial submissions to Emma Eversham and Gary Lloyd

Different pubcos and different operators may have different cider brands on all the time and may well increase their range when spring and summer approaches – but, of course, cider is a year-round drink at pubs and bars.

And its worth to pubs and bars cannot be underestimated as reports in the past year or so show cider sales faring well – something The MA takes a look at here and shows some of the stats through a video.

We also talk to some of those people and businesses running pubs to see which ciders they are stocking and why they choose those ones.

We also ask how cider is promoted at their sites to drive sales and whether there are key dates in the calendar that see a boost to customers purchasing ciders.

We also ask about the innovations that are taking cider up a level from installation of attractive fonts at eye level for customers at your bar to different flavours.

Send editorial submissions to Michelle Perrett and Gary Lloyd

Publication date Monday 29 June.

We look at statistics from insight expert NIQ that show all the different categories making up the on-trade beer market.

There will be plenty of comment on the overall beer market and individual sub sections from NIQ along with sales data showing volume and value sales in the UK pub and bar trade.

This incorporates categories such overall total beer, Low & no alcohol beer, Ale (Cask), Ale (Keg), Ale (Packaged), Stout, World Lager, Standard Lager, Premium Lager, Premium 4% Lager and Craft Beer.

We also show exclusive findings from The MA’s own Pint Price Survey that includes what you can expect to find pubs and bars selling specific beer brands across the UK.

No external submissions.

Sustainability has arguably taken a back seat as operators first battled Covid and now an unrelenting economic crisis.

However, customers want to visit pubs and bars – and eat and drink in the on-trade – that have sustainability at heart.

Whether that means having recognition from authorities when it comes to being B-corp-certified or using game from local shoots or stocking a range of locally sourced beers or using leftover veg and fruit to garnish their cocktails, there’s plenty to shout about.

So, in recognition, The MA is preparing a bullet-point checklist of some of the great sustainable features pubs in the UK are offering and how this is key to attracting footfall and spend on-site.

This feature will show 7 sustainable ideas that other pubs can learn from.

Send editorial submissions to Fiona Griffiths and Gary Lloyd

As the new football season prepares for kick-off, there are so many opportunities for pubs to get people in and spending their money as they watch football at your site.

And it’s not just the Premier League and Champions League that will bring customers in… think about teams lower down the English and European pyramid.

There is nowhere like England in the world that has such a comprehensive and competitive set-up in the world where there are 92 professional teams – and even in non-league football, plenty of those are paying their players plenty too.

If you have the ability to screen matches from the Championship, league One, league and the national League, you’re on a sure footing – plus the other European tournaments such as the Europa League, Conference League and the multitude of top-tier countries’ domestic leagues too.

Here, The MA talks to some of the best in the business and also some smaller sites that are serving the needs of their communities, which means ensuring putting the local team on the TVs if they have the capacity to do and what it means for locals.

Send editorial submissions to Nigel Huddleston and Gary Lloyd

We don’t need to explain how important Christmas is to your business.

The MA looks at sales statistics from Christmas last year plus comment and figures from trade bodies too to demonstrate the festive period’s value.

We look to operators who are specialists in certain fields for Christmas. For example, one that is great on food and find out how it gets ready; one on drinks stocking and the difference between what its usual MO is versus festive period; and maybe a few that offer great events at Christmas – whether that be karaoke/live bands/quizzes/murder-mystery nights – all with a festive flash to them – or simply ensuring staff rotas are correct to meet demand over the busiest and quietest days during December.

Send editorial submissions to Phil Mellows and Gary Lloyd

This is The Morning Advertiser’s rundown of the top 100 pub companies with additional information.

The main list will chart the number of UK sites each pubco operates from the largest to smallest but obviously many will not be listed because the smallest ones to be on the roster in 2025 had 15 sites each.

A lot of activity in the pubs market takes place every year so we look at what has happened and what some pubcos think will happen in the next 12 months.

We will also see the movers and shakers when it comes to senior job roles within the sector during the past year.

This report has the potential to look at other pubco aspects such as breakdowns of the market via statistics; how pubcos are changing from last year’s report to now; a look at the PCA office; and the variation of pub models being seen in the market.

No external submissions