With the World Cup now just around the corner and 21 million extra pints expected to be sold during the course of the competition, it’s important to start thinking about how your pub can best benefit from the upcoming ‘summer of sport’.

If you’re planning on showing any of the games in your pub, you need to be sure that your TV and sound system is up to scratch – customers won’t want to leave the comfort of their living room if you can’t offer them something more than they can get at home.

Also think about the fact that your pub will be busier, so you might need more staff or to come up with another way of serving in order to keep you footie loving punters happy; for example, you could set up a freestanding bottle bar, or try table service.

Our Licensee Support section of the website offers some top tips of making the most of your pub, both during the World Cup and beyond.

We’ve kicked the New Year off in fine style with a hugely successful Admiral Taverns’ open day.

Our events at the British Oak in Wolverhampton on 21 January attracted a great deal of interest from those looking to swapping sides of the bar.

Admiral’s team of Business Development Managers (BDMs) were on hand to provide information about what support is available to both industry newcomers and people who already have pub experience.

Our next open days takes place at West Ham United Football Ground on 28 January and the Lamb & Flag in Swansea on 9 February; to find out more, contact the Admiral Taverns team. You can also find out more about our upcoming events or our range of pubs to let.

Last week, we reported that real ale lovers will soon be able to track down local pubs serving their favourite tipples using their mobiles.

Now Samsung and Useyourlocal.com have joined forces to create an application that allows footie fans to find out which pubs will be showing games.

The new application will be embedded into hundred of thousands of Samsung phones from the end of January, with an iPhone ‘app’ due later in the year.

Useyourlocal.com is letting pubs promote the sport they show for free until 31 January – just visit the site, click on the ‘find local pub’ and input your pub’s channel information.

Showing sport events can be a great in draw for customers, and this is a fantastic new way to promote your pub.

Angela Wroe has more than doubled takings at her pub, The Prince of Wales in Barnsley, since taking it over in July last year.

Angela, whose parents were landlords of the pub 12 years ago, has redecorated and refurbished the bar area and has also made improvements to the outside of the pub with the addition of new outdoor furniture and a smoking shelter.

The pub regularly hosts community events and parties and also has its own darts team, with plans to introduce a pool team as well in the coming months.

In recognition of all her hard work, we’ve presented Angela with an Admiral Taverns Achievement Award.

You can read more about Angela here or, if you’d like the chance to make your mark on your own pub, find out about our pubs to let.

Admiral landlords in the North and Midlands with a musical ear might be interested to hear that ex-Beautiful south frontman Paul Heaton is looking for traditional pubs to play at.

Paul is undertaking a 720-mile Pedals and Pumps trip in May with his band to promote the virtues of the great British pub and the benefits of cycling.

The tour will start at the Rovers Return in Manchester, and Paul is hoping to visit 15 other pubs on his travels.

Paul is looking for pubs within a 10 mile radius of Rochdale, Congleton, Much Wenlock, Stratford Upon Avon, Thame, Tutts Clump, Godstone, St Neots, Wisbech, Skegness, Beverley, Otley, Burnley and Manchester to take part. If you feel your pub could be suitable email: pedalsandbeerpumps@sjmconcerts.com

We’re pleased to hear that real ale drinkers are now able to track down that perfect pint extremely easily as quality monitoring firm Cask Marque have launched a special Sat Nav application and a text messaging service.

Free downloadable Sat Nav software is available on the Cask Marque website (www.cask-marque.co.uk) which will offer real ale fans directions to nearby pubs.

In addition, users can text their postcode to receive the addresses of their two nearest Cask Marque-accredited pubs.

A number of Admiral Taverns’ pubs are Cask Marque approved, and hopefully this new service will ensure these pubs are all firmly on the map!

If you’re a real ale fan who’s thinking of swapping sides of the bar then take a look at our pubs to let.

If you’re thinking about running your own pub in 2010, then it’s advisable to do a bit of research both about the trade and about your local area before you come to any final decisions. 

If you’re not sure where to start, then we have a list of 10 things you should do before entering the pub trade which you should find helpful. Admiral Taverns will also be on hand at these upcoming open days to offer you advice on running a pub:   

Thursday 21^st January from 11:30am – 2:30pm at the British Oak, 155 Willenhall Road, Wolverhampton, West Midlands, WV1 2HU 

Thursday 28^th January from 11:00am – 4:00pm as West Ham United Football Ground, Boleyn Ground, Green Street, London, E13 9AZ 

Tuesday 9^th February at the Lamb & Flag, Sway Road, Morriston, Swansea, West Glamorgan, SA6 8DS  

 More details of upcoming open days can be found on the homepage. Click here to download your copy of our Top 10 tips or find out about our pubs to let.

With the recent cold snap affecting many small businesses, it's good to hear that community pubs haven't been suffering.

The Morning Advertiser website is reporting that the vast majoirty of punters chose to stick close to home over Christmas and the New Year, meaning local pubs performed well.

But, with more severe weather to come, it's important that landlords are as prepared as possible for the impact the weather could have on both their staffing levels and their business.

The Forum of Private Business (FPB) is advising small businesses like pubs to ensure that any plans comply with employment law. The FPB produce an Employment Guide that you might find useful - you can find more info here.