Amsterdam Court finds Heineken liable for Greek market abuses

The Netherlands | The Amsterdam District Court, in a milestone ruling on 24 October, has cleared the way for Macedonian Thrace Brewery (MTB) to press home its claim against Heineken NV for more than EUR 160 million (USD 170 million) in damages.

The court found that Heineken is liable for competition violations committed by its Greek subsidiary, Athenian Brewery, as far back as the 1990s. The ruling piles further pressure on Heineken’s board and its CEO Dolf van den Brink as it creates a dangerous precedent for Heineken which faces a near identical claim from Carlsberg for more than EUR 300 million.

Heineken, which recorded contingencies of EUR 478 million for these cases in its 2023 annual report, confirmed to the Financial Times that the second follow-up claim had been brought by the Greek subsidiary of its rival Carlsberg, Olympic Brewery.

Legal procedures will drag on

Heineken’s Athenian Brewery, which sells brands Alfa, Amstel and Heineken, controls a 50 percent share of the Greek beer market. Carlsberg, which brews Fix and Mythos, has 31 percent, and MTB, the brewer of Vergina beer, 5 percent.

The next steps in the legal procedures will determine whether MTB suffered damages and the extent of the liability.

A Heineken spokesperson called the ruling a “technical legal decision” and emphasised that the amount of damages will only be determined after further legal proceedings. The Dutch firm has until 4 December to file a statement of reply on the alleged damages suffered by MTB and what else it wishes to submit.

Others will be watching

Carlsberg, which has not disclosed details of its claim, told the Financial Times: “We can confirm that we have a pending claim related to a competition case in Greece. We have noted the court’s decision, however there is no immediate impact on our claim at this point.”

In recent years, Heineken has been fined or investigated by competition authorities in Austria, the US, UK, Hungary, India and elsewhere. In Austria, in 2024, the national competition authority found that Heineken’s subsidiary Brau Union had committed anti-competitive practices “that restrict the sales opportunities and market entry of competing brewers and oust existing drinks retailers from the market”.