The Guinness maker secured rights in December to return to the 3Arena, following the deal, in addition to the 3Olympia Theatre, the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre, the Gaiety Theatre, The Academy and The Ambassador Theatre. Until then, Heineken Ireland had the contract for 15 years.

Now, ongoing switch ups mean Aiken and Pod, whose events served brands under Diageo's umbrella until this year, will now serve drinks brewed by Heineken Ireland. 

This means brands such as Heineken, Heineken 0.0, Birra Moretti, Orchard Thieves, Beamish, Murphy’s, and the Served range of pre-mixed cocktails, will be available at these Aiken and POD Events, which include Live at the Marquee (LATM) in Cork, Dublin’s Iveagh Gardens concert series, All Together Now festival in Waterford, the Boucher Road concert series in Belfast, and at the Forbidden Fruit festival at IMMA in Dublin.

The agreement covers just under 40 concerts and three outdoor festivals in total, which will feature international and Irish acts such as Pulp, Kneecap, Paul Weller, James Taylor, Kesha, Bell X1, and David Gray.

“Aiken Promotions has been at the forefront of the live entertainment industry in Ireland for more than 60 years and POD Festivals for more than 30 years, and this new agreement is a significant chapter in our long history in music," said Fiona Curtin, marketing director at Heineken Ireland.

The brewer employs almost 400 people in Ireland, and this year is celebrating 170 years of brewing at its Lady’s Well Brewery in Cork. 

“Given our long and deep-rooted association with Cork, it is particularly pleasing that this agreement includes a major yearly concert series in Cork,” Ms Curtin said.