In a surprising last-minute twist ... booze sales at World Cup stadiums in Qatar have now been banned.
FIFA announced the news early Friday morning -- saying despite initial agreements between the soccer org. and the host country to sell beer and liquor where the championship football will go down, they've now reversed course.
Qatar -- a country where the sale of alcohol is highly restricted -- had been willing to allow Budweiser to sell its boozy products at games ... albeit in less visible and less accessible locations.
But, amid late pressure to ban it entirely, FIFA explained there's now been a change of plans.