No we’re not giving teams the best ways to play, we’ve been gathering weird and wonderful ways you can save money by hosting your own World Cup party. No matter the team – venturing out of the house to watch the match on a bigger than average screen at your local pub or bar is always an expensive outing. Here are our top money saving tips to become the perfect thrifty host instead!

• Venue – although having an outdoors party would save you time and money on the clean up – to actually see the match the screen needs to be in the shade. Instead of taking it completely indoors you can get budget priced gazebos and windbreakers from local supermarkets – this will also double as shelter if the weather takes a turn for the worse and you still won’t have to replenish your cleaning supplies for the aftermath!
• Top of the list – a screen slightly on the bigger side is always a good idea, depending on the number of people you’re entertaining – but before heading to your most convenient store have a shop around – plenty of stores have discount and deals on their screens for the purpose of the big matches!
• Decoration – the main focal point at these events is the screen, so decoration can be kept to a minimum. If you’re feeling thrifty it’s not too difficult to fashion some flags out of paper and pens – it could even be a great distraction for the little ones whilst you’re preparing everything!
• Costumes – similarly, flags can be bought from bargain bucket stores or old sheets can be re-fashioned into flags! (Just double check they really are the old ones…)
• Food – although BBQs are the traditional cooking method of choice when hosting a football based party, it can be hard to budget as meat can be very expensive and as it is ‘help yourself’ it can be hard to estimate and control how much people will eat, which could mean you’re looking at a lot of leftovers or not enough to go around – both could spell disaster for a thrifter! That being said, buying in bulk will almost always mean you’ll get a far better deal than you would buying for a small family gathering.
• Entertainment – there is always the chance that a match won’t go so well – it’s always a good idea to have some sort of entertainment available to serve as a good distraction from any match nerves floating around. Flag colouring or face painting can be a great distraction – especially if there are lots of (big) kids attending!

What do you think – do you have any money saving tips to add?