Amsterdam court makes Heineken jointly liable in Greek brewer’s competition case
The Amsterdam District Court has held Heineken jointly liable for damage linked to competition-law violations by its Greek subsidiary, Athenian Brewery. The amount owed to rival Macedonian Thrace Brewery, producer of Vergina beer, remains to be determined.
Parent company shares liability
The Amsterdam District Court has held Heineken jointly and severally liable for damage arising from competition-law violations committed by Athenian Brewery, its Greek subsidiary. The ruling strengthens Macedonian Thrace Brewery’s effort to recover losses it says were caused by exclusionary practices in the Greek beer market.
In its interim judgment of 23 October 2024, the court concluded that Heineken and Athenian Brewery formed a single economic unit and therefore constituted the same undertaking under Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. The court found that Heineken exercised decisive influence over the subsidiary. It said proof that the parent had intervened in each specific market decision was consequently unnecessary.
Govnews.gr described the decision as a major victory for the independent brewery based in Komotini, which produces Vergina beer. However, the Amsterdam Court of Appeal’s 2021 ruling did not itself establish Heineken’s substantive liability. That judgment concerned whether claims against Heineken and Athenian Brewery could be heard together in the Netherlands. The District Court determined liability in 2024.
Sixteen years of market abuse
The underlying infringement was established by the Hellenic Competition Commission. In 2014, the authority found that Athenian Brewery had abused its dominant position from September 1998 to 14 September 2014 through practices intended to exclude competitors. Govnews.gr reports that these included exclusivity arrangements, discounts and pressure on wholesalers and hospitality businesses. Athenian Brewery’s portfolio included Heineken, Amstel and Alfa.
According to Govnews.gr, Athenian Brewery controlled about 70% of the Greek beer market when Vergina entered retail distribution in 1998. The Hellenic Competition Commission imposed a fine reported by the publication at €31.4 million. Govnews.gr says a Greek appellate court upheld the infringement finding in 2017 and finalized the penalty at €26.7 million.
The civil case is separate from that administrative fine. Macedonian Thrace Brewery is seeking compensation for its own alleged losses rather than another regulatory penalty. The Amsterdam court stated in February 2026 that the follow-on damages claim then had a principal value of €82 million. The court must compare MTB’s actual performance with the counterfactual position it could have achieved without the infringement before fixing any award.
Implications for European brewing groups
The judgment shows how liability for a subsidiary’s conduct can extend to a parent company when both entities are treated as one undertaking under EU competition law. For multinational brewers, separation between a headquarters and a national operating company may therefore offer limited protection when the parent exercises decisive influence.
The immediate commercial issue is the value of sales and profits that Macedonian Thrace Brewery may have lost during the 1998–2014 infringement period. A damages award could affect Heineken and Athenian Brewery directly, while the court’s reasoning may also matter to other producers pursuing claims against dominant groups. For independent brewers, wholesalers and hospitality operators, the case underlines that restrictions on access to taps, refrigerators and distribution channels can produce liabilities long after the conduct ends.
