Liverpool supporters found an unexpected way to make money during their Champions League trip to Austria, according to reports, after LASK’s deposit system for reusable drinking cups turned returned cups into cash.
Reports said many fans spent the evening and the period after the match collecting cups from stands and concourses so they could claim the cashback. The activity emerged around LASK’s deposit scheme, which is intended to encourage the return of reusable containers.
The Austrian club has promoted a plastic-free stadium model and uses the deposit system as part of that approach. The setup gives supporters a financial reason to bring cups back rather than leave them behind.
The match also highlighted broader efforts around circularity in European football. UEFA claims to be placing greater emphasis on circular-economy measures at its club competitions. Liverpool, meanwhile, has been publicising its own recycling record at Anfield, saying more than one million plastic bottles have been recycled there over the past three seasons.
The cup-collecting episode was a light-hearted sideshow, but it illustrates how deposit systems can change spectator behaviour. It also shows how reusable packaging and return incentives are being presented at major matches, although the reports do not quantify how many cups were returned or how much money fans collected.