Coffee Bet Prohibited - Districts Want to Stick to Action - Berlin’s ‘Coffee Bet’ for the homeless sparks legal battle ahead of 2026 launch
Berlin’s annual ‘Coffee Bet’ charity drive for the homeless is facing a dispute between local districts and the city’s Senate Chancellery. The event, planned for January 19 to February 5, 2026, has been banned by officials—but most districts are refusing to comply. Organisers and corporate backers are now clashing over the decision, putting the future of the long-running campaign in doubt.
The ‘Coffee Bet’ initiative, led by retailer Michael Lind and his partners Ralf Oelmann, Hasan Ilter, and Mike Baer, encourages districts to collect at least 500 coffee packs for Berlin’s homeless support charity, Kältehilfe. Each participating district that meets the target receives €2,500 from the organisers. This year, all 12 districts—except Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg—had signed up to take part.
The Senate Chancellery intervened, citing unspecified legal concerns over the campaign’s structure. In response, several districts, including Neukölln and Reinickendorf, announced they would ignore the ban and proceed with collections as planned. Meanwhile, corporate sponsors have pulled their support in protest against the Senate’s position, leaving the event’s funding uncertain. Scheduled to run for just over two weeks, the drive has become a winter tradition in Berlin. But with the Senate’s opposition and sponsors withdrawing, organisers now face a race against time to keep the 2026 edition alive.
The standoff leaves the ‘Coffee Bet’ in limbo just weeks before its launch. Districts pushing ahead with collections risk further conflict with city authorities, while the loss of corporate backing threatens the campaign’s financial footing. The outcome will determine whether thousands of coffee packages reach Berlin’s homeless this winter.
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