Heineken has won the lucrative 10-year contract to supply beer to Amsterdam’s Johan Cruijff Arena football stadium, beating Grolsch which has been the main supplier since the stadium opened 21 years ago.

The contract is for all events, sporting and non-sporting at the large stadium, which is home to the Ajax football team.

The stadium is wryly called Amsterdam’s biggest café and  some 1.5 million glasses of beer are sold there every year. Amsterdam-based Heineken will replace Grolsch as beer supplier to the stadium from 31 July.

As a founding Arena partner, Grolsch was permitted to match Heineken’s offer but sources said Grolsch’s new Japanese parent refused to provide the marketing sums required.

Heineken is revamping the Arena’s 150 beer sales points where a number of Heineken brands will be on offer.