List of countries with Burger King franchises
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is a list of countries with Burger King franchises. As of 31 December 2024, Burger King operated 19,732 restaurants across 125 countries and territories.[1][2]
Burger King (BK) itself began as a franchise of its progenitor company, Insta-Burger King. It grew in the United States using a combination of corporate locations and franchising, before divesting itself of its corporate holdings in 2013. It began its international expansion in 1969 with a location in Canada, followed by Australia in 1971, and Europe in 1975. Latin America and South America became part of its market later in that decade, Asia followed in the 1980s, and Northern Africa and the Middle East followed shortly thereafter. Sub-Saharan Africa and the former nations of the Iron Curtain came much later, beginning in the late 1990s and continuing into the 2010s.
As of 2014, Burger King operates in almost every country in the Western Hemisphere, and most of Europe and East Asia. It has embarked on a plan to base a good portion of its future growth in the BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa), with plans to open more than 3000 locations in three of those four countries. Burger King also has a longstanding presence at U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force installations worldwide, dating back to the 1980s under a contract with Army & Air Force Exchange Service. Today, while other chains such as Taco Bell, Popeyes, and Subway have a presence on military bases, virtually every major Army and Air Force installation hosts a BK restaurant.
History
Burger King was first founded in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1953, as Insta-Burger King. Shortly after the acquisition of the chain by Pillsbury in 1967, Burger King opened its first Canadian restaurant in Windsor, Ontario, in 1969.[3]: 66 [4] Other international locations followed soon after: Oceania in 1971 with its Australian franchise Hungry Jack's, and Europe in 1975 with a restaurant in Madrid, Spain.[5][6] Beginning in 1982, BK and its franchisees began operating stores in several East Asian countries, including Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea.[7] Due to high competition, all of the Japanese locations were closed in 2001; however, BK reentered the Japanese market in June 2007.[8] BK's Central and South American operations began in Mexico in the late 1970s, and by the early 1980s it was operating locations in Caracas, Venezuela, Santiago, Chile and Buenos Aires, Argentina.[7]
While Burger King lags behind McDonald's in international locations by over 12,000 stores, by 2008 it had managed to become the largest chain in several countries, including Mexico and Spain.[9]
The company divides its international operations into three segments: The Middle East, Europe and Africa division (EMEA), Asia-Pacific (APAC) and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). In each of these regions, Burger King has established several subsidiaries to develop strategic partnerships and alliances to expand into new territories. In its EMEA group, Burger King's Switzerland-based subsidiary Burger King Europe GmbH is responsible for the licensing and development of BK franchises in those regions.[10] In the APAC region, the Singapore-based BK AsiaPac, Pte. Ltd. business unit handles franchising for East Asia, the Asian subcontinent and all Oceanic territories.[11][12] The LAC region includes Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean Islands.: 6, Exhibit 21:1
Africa
During 2012, the African market saw a new agreement with Grand Parade Investments of South Africa to enter then Africa's largest economy, with restaurants opening in 2013.[13] The company began its move into Sub-Saharan Africa in May 2013 when Burger King opened its first outlets in South Africa. The company sold franchise rights to local gaming and slots machine operator Grand Parade Investments Ltd. The South African operation sold over double its initial forecasts in its opening weeks with sales of $474,838 at just one of its outlets in Cape Town in its first seven weeks. In a deal with local petrochemical company Sasol, outlets were opened at filling stations across the country starting in 2014.[14] In April 2014 it was announced that due to high demand, the number of new outlets being opened in 2014 would be increased from 12 to 14 across the country.[15] As of December 2015, there are 51 Burger King restaurants in South Africa.[16] 10 restaurants are set to open in Mauritius by 2021.[citation needed]
| Country/territory | Year entered |
No. of restaurants [2] |
Master franchisee |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Djibouti | 2022 | 1 | First location in Bawadi Mall, Djibouti. | |
| Egypt | 2007 | 43 | The Olayan Group | برغر كينغ (in Arabic) Olayan's food service subsidiary, Hana International, is the master franchisee for the Middle East and North Africa.[17][18] |
| Ethiopia | 2020 | 2 | Belayab Foods Production PLC.[19] | First location in Bole International Airport. |
| Ghana | 2018 | 7 | SIA QSR Ghana Ltd.[20] | First location is in the Accra Mall. |
| Ivory Coast | 2015 | 9 | Servair Côte d'Ivoire | First location is in Marcory. |
| Kenya | 2016 | 5 | Servair Kenya[21] | First location in the Hub Karen, Nairobi.[22] |
| Mauritius | 2021 | 7 | CG Royal Food | First location at Bagatelle Mall. 1000m2 of land dedicated for the drive thru and the outlet.[citation needed] |
| Morocco | 2011 | 42 | General First Food Services | First location is in Casablanca. |
| Nigeria | 2021 | 22 | Allied Food and Confectionery Services Ltd | First location is in Victoria Island, Lagos[23] |
| South Africa | 2013 | 150 | Burger King South Africa (Pty) Ltd | First location opened in Cape Town on 9 May 2013, with plans for more nationwide.[24][25] |
| Tunisia | 2019 | 1 | General First Food Services Tunisia | First location is in Sousse in the Mall of Sousse; Halal.[26] |
Asia
The first Burger King in Asia opened in Granville Road, Hong Kong on 7 August 1979, as the 2500th Burger King globally.[27] In 1982, franchisees opened stores in several East Asian countries, including Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea.[7]
In 1982, the license for Burger King's operations in Singapore was given to Food Systems. It planned to open its first outlet at Peninsular Plaza.[28]
Burger King expanded to Japan in 1993 as a 50-50 venture with Seibu Railways Group. Its first outlet in Iruma opened on 22 September, with another in Yokohama and another suburb expected to open that year. Additional outlets were expected to open in station buildings owned by Seibu. Burger King was a latecomer in Japan's hamburger market, coming at a time of "recession". Unlike its competitor McDonald's, Burger King plans to leave its original menu untouched.[29] Later owned by Japan Tobacco,[30] it withdrew from the Japanese market[8] in February 2001 with all of its 25 outlets sold to Lotteria.[30] Burger King reentered the Japanese market by opening the first outlet in Shinjuku, Tokyo in November 2006.[31]
It also reentered the Hong Kong market in December 2007. This time its Hong Kong operation is wholly owned by North Asia Strategic, who obtained the exclusive right to operate from BK AsiaPac Pte Limited.[32][33] The first outlet was opened on 29 December 2007 in the Sun Arcade, Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon.[33] As of 2008, 15 stores were in operation,[34] including five in Hong Kong Island (Central, Wanchai, Causeway Bay and Fortress Hill), five in Kowloon (Tsim Sha Tsui, Hung Hom, Mongkok, Wong Tai Sin and Tsz Wan Shan) and five in the New Territories. However, due to fierce competition, legal problems, and rising rents, the number of stores was reduced to two (HKIA and The Peak) in late 2015.[35]
2012 saw a major international expansion initiative. The primary thrust was aimed at the BRIC nations, with several new master franchise agreements in those countries that will eventually create upwards of 2500 new stores by 2020.[36][notes 1] One of these deals also creates the single largest international franchise agreement in the company history, a deal to open over 1000 stores in China with a new "super"-franchise headed by the Kurdoglu family of Turkey.[37] An updated agreement with its Russian franchisee will see a major expansion into Siberia. This move puts Burger King in a superior position to its chief rival McDonald's, as it currently does not operate any locations east of the Ural Mountains.[38][39]
| Country/territory | Year entered |
No. of restaurants [2] |
Master franchisee |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bahrain | 2007 | 1 | HANA International Company | Halal[40] |
| Bangladesh | 2016 | 9 | Tiffin Box (Bangla Trac) | Nine branches opened in Dhaka as of 2024. |
| Brunei | 2014 | 6 | Sinofood Express | The first outlet opened on 25 February 2014 in Ambrym Road[citation needed], Bandar Seri Begawan. |
| Cambodia | 2013 | 15 | Imex Pan-Pacific Group | Opened in Phnom Penh International Airport on 1 March 2013[41] |
| China | 2005 | 1,474 | TAB Food Investments | 汉堡王 (in Chinese) First outlet opened in Shanghai on 28 June 2005.[42] 12,000th location opened in Beijing.[43][44] Some outlets in Nanchang were reported in 2020, through the CCTV 3.15 evening party, that use expired foods as materials.[45] |
| Hong Kong | 1979 | 2 | North Asia Strategic Holdings, Ltd.[46] | 堡加敬 (1970s to early 1980s), 漢堡飽王 (1980s to 1990s), 漢堡王 (2006 to present) (in Chinese) First operated in Hong Kong (then a British colony) between the 1970s–1990s. |
| India | 2014 | 510 | Blue Foods (western India), Everstone (North India) | The first store opened in November 2014 in Delhi. 450 stores. |
| Indonesia | 2007 | 147 | PT Mitra Adiperkasa Tbk | Previously operated in the country from 1986 to 1998. The first outlet was opened in Jalan MT Haryono, West Tebet, South Jakarta with management from PT Bekasari Pratama Food, which is one of the Gelael business groups (the group also owned KFC franchisee PT Fast Food Indonesia Tbk),[47] and closed in 1998 after the 1997 Asian financial crisis. It was reopened on 26 April 2007 with the biggest outlet in Southeast Asia, with management from PT Sari Burger Indonesia, a subsidiary of PT Mitra Adiperkasa Tbk. The first outlet was in Senayan City, Central Jakarta.[48] |
| Israel | 2016 | 16 | Pierre Besnainou | ברגר קינג (in Hebrew) Previously operated in the country from 1994 to 2010. The locations were Re-branded as Burgeranch.[49] In June 2015, the chain announced that it will relaunch in Israel. The first branch in Tel Aviv at the location of Rabin Square was opened on 1 February 2016. Burger King Israel has 8 outlets: 4 in Tel Aviv and another 4 in Beer-Sheva, Hertzliya, Ra’anana and Hod Hasharon. |
| Japan | 1993-2001,2007- | 253 | Affinity Equity Partners[50] | バーガーキング (bāgākin-gu, katakana spelling of Burger King) (in Japanese) Previously operated in the country from 1993 to 2001[51] |
| Iraq | 2019 | 16 | The first branch was opened in Erbil on 18 November 2019, in 2022 ten more branches were opened in Iraq, the last of which was in Basra on 3 May 2022. | |
| Kuwait | 1990 | 96 | Army and Air Force Exchange Service(AAFES) The Olayan Group | The AAFES location opened after the first Gulf War.[52] Olayan has license for Kuwait but there were no locations as of 2011.[17][18] |
| Kazakhstan | 2012 | 55 | Verny Capital | The first restaurant was opened in Almaty on 28 May 2012. 50 outlets as of December 2022. |
| Lebanon | 2001 | 19 | King Food SAL (Lebanon) | Subsidiary of Oyalan. Halal[53] |
| Malaysia | 1997 | 207 | Cosmo Restaurants Sdn Bhd[54] | First location opened at Sungai Buloh Overhead Bridge in Sungai Buloh in 1997. |
| Maldives | 2013 | 3 | Minor International & Conglomerate | Opened at Ibrahim Nasir International Airport on 8 July 2013 |
| Mongolia | 2015 | 13 | Makc Group LLC | 9 outlets as of December 2018.[55] |
| Oman | 2010 | 12 | First Food Services Oman | Subsidiary of Oyalan. Originally operated in the country in 1994–2005[56] |
| Pakistan | 2013 | 84 | MCR Group | Opened in Karachi on 5 October 2013; operations suspended and all outlets closed in 2022; nine outlets at time of sale; planned relaunch under Maaks International. |
| Philippines | 1997 | 132 | Jollibee Foods Corporation and BK Titans Inc. | The first Burger King branch in the Philippines opened at Robinsons Galleria, Quezon City in December 1997.[57] PERF Restaurants Inc. (formerly PhilKing Restaurants and Development Corp.), the Philippine franchisee of Burger King, was owned by Ayala Corporation until it was sold to BK Titans Inc. in 2006.[58] In 2011, Jollibee Foods Corporation acquired the majority stake from BK Titans Inc., leading to Burger King's growth in the country from having 23 branches (mostly in Metro Manila) at the time of the acquisition.[59][60] |
| Qatar | 1996[61] | 25 | Premier Food Services | Halal[62] |
| Saudi Arabia | 1992[63] | 165 | The Olayan Group | برغر كينغ (in Arabic) Halal[64] |
| Singapore | 1982 | 70 | Burger King Singapore Pte. Ltd | Halal[65] First BK Whopper Bar in Asia[66] |
| South Korea | 1984 | 517 | Affinity Equity Partners[67] | 버거킹 (in Korean) South Korea received its first Burger King store in 1984, and has 236 outlets as of November 2016.[68] Burger King's 1000th store in Asia also opened in this country (Gwacheon) in January 2013.[69] |
| Sri Lanka | 2013 | 23 | Softlogic Restaurants Pvt Ltd (a fully owned subsidiary of Softlogic Holdings PLC) | As of March 2022, there are 23 outlets in Sri Lanka.[70] |
| Taiwan | 1989 | 98 | Nexus Point Capital | 漢堡王 (in Chinese)[71] There are 37 outlets in Taiwan as of January 2019.[72] |
| Thailand | 1994 | 126 | The Minor Food Group[73][74] | Offers delivery services |
| Timor-Leste | 2013[75] | 2 | Burger King is currently the first and only foreign fast food chain in East Timor. The first store opened in Dili in December 2013. | |
| United Arab Emirates | 1993[76] | 106 | First Food Services, LLC | Subsidiary of Oyalan. Halal[77] |
| Uzbekistan | 2025[78] | 3 | Holten Group | In total, by 2026, the company plans to expand to 10 locations and expand beyond Tashkent.[79] |
| Vietnam | 2011 | 23 | Imex Pan-Pacific Group | Opened at Tan Son Nhat International Airport on 27 November 2011 |
A Burger King restaurant in Kuala Belait, Brunei
A Burger King restaurant in Dili, East Timor
A Burger King restaurant in Hong Kong
A Burger King restaurant in Sakae, Nagoya, Japan
A Burger King restaurant in Quezon City, Philippines
A Burger King restaurant in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
A Burger King restaurant at Changi Airport, Singapore
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Europe
Burger King began its expansion in Europe in 1975 with its first location in Madrid, Spain.[80] The first German branch of Burger King was opened in 1976 at the Kurfürstendamm in West Berlin. In 1990, an East German branch was opened in the town of Dresden.
Burger King operated in Iceland from 2004-2008, having two locations at its peak.[81]
In December 2012, BK returned to the French market, based on an agreement with multinational operator Autogrill,[82] a move that has met with some excitement in the country.[83][84] In July 1997, it was announced the chain would be leaving the country, closing its 22 franchised and 17 corporate locations, after a poorly executed entry into the market that left it unable to compete against McDonald's and local chain Quick.[85][86] The partnership with Autogrill is a move to consolidate BK's presence in travel plazas along major highways in France, Italy, Poland and other European nations.[87]
In November 2013, Groupe Bertrand, who owns several restaurant franchises, acquired the BK master franchise Autogrill, becoming one of their franchisees.[88] In September 2015, Groupe Bertrand announced being in talks with Quick's owner, investment fund Qualium, to take over all the franchise and convert all Quick restaurants in France into BKs.[89]
In December 2013, BK returned to Finland, after three decades of absence. The first restaurant, located on Mannerheimintie in central Helsinki, instantly proved so popular that on every day since its opening, people queued in front of the restaurant to get in, sometimes for over half an hour. The only exception so far has been Christmas time, when the restaurant was closed. According to Mikko Molberg, the leader of the Finnish Burger King franchise, the restaurant has attracted over 2000 customers on every single day, which has surprised the restaurant employees and the franchise owners. The long queues have been extensively covered and ridiculed in social media, comparing them to people queuing in front of a McDonald's restaurant in Moscow in the early 1990s, and contrasting them with the nearly nonexistent queues at the BK restaurants in Stockholm.[90]
In 2018, BK expanded into Armenia, Azerbaijan, Greece, and the partially unrecognized state Kosovo, as well as re-entering the Slovakian market after nearly 7 years of absence under a exclusive license from AmRest. In June 2019, BK opened its doors in Albania after 7 months of hype in the QTU Shopping Mall.
In 2020, the first 3 BK restaurants opened in Estonia. This was the period of the COVID-19 pandemic so the outlets had to be opened via Tallink by the popular videoconferencing software program Zoom.[91] In December 2020, BK restaurants were opened in Latvia and Lithuania.[92][93] In October 2023, the first BK restaurant was opened in Bosnia and Herzegovina.[94]
Following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, RBI asked its Russian partner to suspend operations, but says the joint-venture structure prevents it from forcing closures; outlets have remained open.[95]
Burger King plans to invest in Serbia and soon to open multiple restaurants throughout the country. [96]
| Country/territory | Year entered |
No. of restaurants [2] |
Master franchisee | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albania | 2019 | 11 | Buçaj Retail | The first outlet opened at the QTU Shopping Mall in early June 2019.[97] |
| Andorra | 1981 | 4 | Ibersol Group | |
| Armenia | 2017 | 5 | Բուրգեր Քինգ (in Armenian) First outlet opened in 2017 at Dalma Garden Mall.[98] | |
| Austria | 2000 | 64 | Theophil Holding GmbH | First outlet opened in Vienna.[99] |
| Azerbaijan | 2017 | 5 | BK Azərbaycan MMC | |
| Belarus | 2015 | 52 | Burger BK LLC | First outlet opened in Minsk on 9 July 2015. |
| Belgium | 2017 | 58 | Kharis Capital | Former Quick restaurants rebranded as BK. |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2023 | 4 | Buçaj Retail | First outlet opened in Sarajevo. 4 outlets as of December 2024 (1 in Sarajevo, 1 in Mostar, 1 in Banja Luka and 1 in Ilidža).[100][101][102][103] |
| Bulgaria | 2008 | 6 | Balkan Foods | |
| Croatia | 2014 | 8 | Kraljevi Restorani d.o.o.[104] | First outlet is located at the Draganić rest area on A1 motorway near Karlovac. 8 outlets as of September 2025 (4 in Zagreb, 1 in Split, 2 in Rijeka, 1 again on A1 motorway).[105] |
| Cyprus | 2003–2012; 2014 | 22 | WOW Burgers (PHC Franchised Restaurants) TAB Gıda (Northern Cyprus) | Closed in 2012 amid litigation; reopened March 2014 in Paphos; brand present in Northern Cyprus since 2019 via rebranding of Burger City.[106][107][108][109] |
| Czech Republic | 2008 | 59 | Rex Concepts CEE (McWin)[110] | |
| Denmark | 1977 | 60 | King Foods[111] | |
| Estonia | 2020 | 8 | Tallink | First 3 restaurants opened in May 2020. These were the first BKs to be opened via Zoom. Two restaurants opened in 2016 and 2022 operate aboard Tallink cruise ships MS Megastar and MyStar, sailing between Tallinn and Helsinki.[91][112] |
| Faroe Islands | 2002 | 1 | King Foods[111] | Opened 9 October 2002 at the SMS shopping centre in Tórshavn.[113] |
| Finland | 1982–1985, 2013 | 67 | Restel | First BKs opened in Helsinki and Tampere in 1982, but closed a few years on. Returning to Finland in late 2013, the first new BK was opened in Helsinki on 13 December. As of July 2019, 58 restaurants has opened, including two aboard cruise ships of ferry company Tallink, sailing between Helsinki and Tallinn.[114] |
| France | 1980–1998, 2012 | 617 | Bertrand Group, Autogrill | There is one restaurant in Marseille Provence Airport, opened 22 December 2012. No restaurants in France between 1997 and 2012. BK returned with one outlet in Paris, Saint-Lazare Station on 16 December 2013. In late 2015, BK took over French competitor Quick and will convert most of their outlets into BK. As of December 2025, BK has 617 restaurants in France.[115] |
| Georgia | 2013 | 5 | TAB Gıda | ბურგერ კინგი (in Georgian) |
| Germany | 1976 | 758 | Burger King Deutschland GmbH[116] | First BK Whopper Bar in Europe (Munich). 700+ restaurants as of 2018.[117] |
| Gibraltar | 1993 | 1 | BKUK GROUP LIMITED | First and only operational outlet is located at Casemates Square.[118] |
| Greece | 1997–2014, 2018 | 7 | SSP Hellas SA
PHC franchised restaurants |
First outlet opened at the airport of Rhodes, followed by the second at Athens' airport.[119] The next opened at Thessaloniki, Corfu, Zante, and Kos airports . The first BK outlet outside an airport opened in January of 2026 in Chalandri district, Athens. |
| Hungary | 1991 | 62 | Fusion Kft. | First outlet opened in Budapest.[120][121] |
| Ireland | 1981 | 50 | OKR Group | |
| Italy | 1999 | 315 | Kharis Capital | First outlet opened in Milan. 315 outlets as of Oct 2025.[122] |
| Jersey | 2016 | 1 | Sandpiper CI | Formerly three BK outlets in Jersey, now only one.[123] |
| Kosovo | 2018 | 15 | Buçaj Retail | First outlet opened at Albi Mall, Pristina in early December 2018.[124] |
| Latvia | 2020 | 7 | Tallink | First outlet opened at Akropolis shopping center in Riga on 4 December 2020.[92][125] |
| Lithuania | 2020 | 6 | Tallink | First outlet opened at Akropolis shopping center in Vilnius, 11 Dec 2020.[93][126] |
| Luxembourg | 2017 | 13 | Kharis Capital | Former Quick restaurants rebranded as BK. |
| Malta | 1995 | 7 | Simonds Farsons Cisk | First Outlet opened in June 1995 in Valletta Repubblic Street by Food Chain LTD |
| Montenegro | 2022 | 6 | Buçaj Retail | First BK restaurant opened on 26 December 2022 in capital of Podgorica, located near a big supermarket called "HD Lakovići" in Zabjelo (near a big roundabout in Zabjelo). |
| Netherlands | 1981 | 70 | BKNL B.V.[127] | 62 restaurants in 2019.[128] |
| North Macedonia | 2011 | 8 | TAB Gıda | First BK opened in Aug 2011, located at the Skopje airport. |
| Norway | 1988 | 107 | King Foods[111] | |
| Poland | 1992-2001, 2007 | 78[129] | Rex Concepts CEE (McWin)[110] | |
| Portugal | 2001[130] | 202 | Restaurant Brands Iberia | |
| Romania | 2008 | 40 | Rex Concepts CEE (McWin)[110] | BK expanded again in Romania by opening restaurants in Bucharest in 2019, after 7 years with only one location at the Henri Coanda-Otopeni Airport, functional as of 2008.[131][132] |
| Russia | 2010 | 802 | Burger King Russia (joint company of VTB, Investment Capital Ukraine, Restaurant Brands International and Alexander Kobolov)[133] | Бургер Кинг (in Russian) The first Russian outlet opened in Moscow on 21 January 2010. Russian outlets continue operating without RBI consent.[134] |
| Slovakia | 2010–2011, 2018 | 8 | AmRest | First outlet opened in March 2010 by Tekaz, a company with no previous experiences in gastronomy; closed in Dec 2011 due to bankruptcy. AmRest got an exclusive license in 2018 and opened their first outlet in Slovakia on 23 November.[135] Burger King terminated its franchising contract with AmRest, which means no new Burger King restaurants would be opened.[136] |
| Slovenia | 2011–2020, 2025 | 1 | Lagardère Travel Retail | New location in Logatec opened in 2025.[137] |
| Spain | 1975 | 974 | Restaurant Brands Iberia | First ever BK in Europe opened in Madrid.[80] Largest burger chain in Spain,[9] the country with the most numerous BK's in Europe, with 701 restaurants as of June 2017.[138] |
| Sweden | 1976 | 117 | King Foods[111] | The first store in Sweden opened on Gustav Adolfs torg, Malmö, it remains open to this day.[139] |
| Switzerland | 1981 | 93 | BKCH Holding SA | First location in Lugano. In May 2017 there were 55 restaurants, including Europe's first Burger King – Express. |
| Turkey | 1995 | 772 | TAB Gıda | BK was introduced into Turkey in 1995.[140] There are 747 BK restaurants in Turkey as of 2024.[141] Permissible for Muslims.[142] |
| United Kingdom | 1976 | 572 | BKUK GROUP LIMITED[143] | The first outlet was located on Coventry Street in Central London. |
Burger King's first outlet in Armenia, located at Dalma Garden Mall
A Burger King restaurant in Fontaine-l'Évêque, Belgium
A Burger King restaurant in Châtenay-Malabry, France
Burger King restaurant beside Junction One Retail Park, Antrim, County Antrim, Northern Ireland
A Burger King restaurant in Rotterdam, Netherlands
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North America
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North America is the company's home territory and home to its first non-American stores; it opened its first international restaurant in Windsor, Ontario, Canada in 1969.[3][4]
Since its purchase in 2011, Burger King has seen a 14% sales increase in its Latin American and Caribbean operations.[144] The continued expansion in these market could provide a significant portions of Burger King's growth during the decade of the 2010s.[145] In the Mexican market, Burger King sold 97 corporate-owned locations to its largest franchisee in that country. The deal means multi-chain operator Alsea, S.A.B. de C.V will eventually operate approximately half of Mexico's 400+ Burger King locations while receiving exclusive expansion rights in Mexico for a twenty-year period.[146]
Elsewhere in Central America, Burger King entered in a deal with another of its franchises, the Beboca Group of Panama, to create a new corporate entity to handle expansion and logistics in the LAC region, which until this time had no centralized operations group.: 6, Exhibit 21:1 [147] The deal follows a unification of the company's web presence in Latin America and the Caribbean,[148] as well as aligning all of its various web initiatives including mobile services, Facebook presence and guest relation tools.[149] The Latin American moves are part of a corporate plan to take advantage of the growing middle class in these regions.[150]
Burger King's growth into the Caribbean began in 1963 when the company opened its first location in Puerto Rico. These locations were the first restaurants the company opened outside the continental United States.[151]
| Country/territory | Year entered |
No. of restaurants [2] |
Master franchisee | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antigua and Barbuda | 2012 | 2 | Island Burger Ltd.[152] | Opened on 27 March 2012,[153] second branch opened in 1st half of 2013 |
| Aruba | 1981 | 4 | All American Burgers Inc. | First hamburger QSR (quick service restaurant) to enter market |
| Bahamas | 1966[154] | 11 | Edmiranda Restaurants Ltd.[155] | |
| Barbados | 2013 | 7 | Restaurant Associates Limited[156] | |
| Canada | 1968 | 381 | Redberry Investments Inc.[157] | First international location[158] |
| Cayman Islands | 1982[159] | 5 | Burger Holdings Ltd.[160] | |
| Costa Rica | 1992 | 44 | BK Centro America (BK and Beboca Ltd.) | Closed in October 2015 because of numerous issues with local franchiser and license usage; returned in June 2016 with a new restaurant opened in San José |
| Curaçao | 2008 | 3 | JDA Foods B.V.[161] | |
| Dominican Republic | 1994 | 33 | Concesiones y Servicios, S.A.S.[162] | 31 Outlets See Burger King Dominican Republic |
| El Salvador | 1994 | 49 | BK Centro America (BK and Beboca Ltd.) | It originally started in 1993 as a food truck |
| Guatemala | 1989 | 59 | BK Centro America (BK and Beboca Ltd.) | First location in La zona nueve[163] |
| Greenland | 2025 | 1 | Pisiffik A/S | First location in Sisimiut[164][165] |
| Honduras | 1990 | 42 | BK Centro America (BK and Beboca Ltd.) | |
| Jamaica | 1985 | 31 | Restaurant Associates Limited | First location in Ocho Rios[166] |
| Martinique | ? | 3 | ||
| Mexico | 1991 | 454 | Burger King Mexicana, S.A. de C.V. | First outlet in Yucatán[167] |
| Nicaragua | 2008–2018, 2020 | 4 | BK Centro America (BK and Beboca Ltd.) | |
| Panama | 1981 | 29 | Adiser S.A.[168] | |
| Puerto Rico | 1963 | 159 | Caribbean Restaurants, LLC[169] | First Burger King Location outside the continental United States. |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | 2017 | 1 | ? | |
| Sint Maarten | ? | 3 | ? | |
| Trinidad and Tobago | 2008 | 14 | Restaurant Holdings Limited[170] | |
| United States | 1953 1959 | 6,701 | Burger King Corporation | Founded as Insta-Burger King in 1953; purchased in 1959 by current company |
Oceania
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When Burger King moved to expand its operations into Australia, it found that its business name was already trademarked by a takeaway food shop in Adelaide.[171] The Canadian-Australian franchisee, Jack Cowin, selected the "Hungry Jack" brand name, one of then Burger King's owner Pillsbury's U.S. pancake mixture products, and slightly changed the name to a possessive form by adding an apostrophe and "s" to form the new name "Hungry Jack's". In 1996, shortly after the Australian trademark on the Burger King name lapsed, Burger King began to open its own Australian stores in 1997.[172][173][174][175] As a result of Burger King's actions, Hungry Jack's owner Jack Cowin and his company Competitive Foods Australia, began legal proceedings in 2001 against the Burger King Corporation. Hungry Jack's won the case,[176][177][178] and Burger King eventually left the country.[179] Hungry Jack's took ownership of the former Burger King locations and subsequently renamed the remaining Burger King locations as Hungry Jack's.[173][180] As of June 2019, Burger King had 83 stores operating in New Zealand.[181] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Burger King went into receivership in April 2020.[182]
| Country/territory | Year entered |
No. of restaurants [2] |
Master franchisee |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 1971 | 471 | Hungry Jack's Pty Ltd | Hungry Jack's is the master franchisee for Australia. |
| Guam | ? | 4 | Baba Corp | |
| Fiji | 2015 | 7 | Motibhai Group | |
| New Caledonia | 2017[183] | 3 | The first store opened in Nouméa in 2017. | |
| New Zealand | 1993 | 80 | Tahua Partners | Original owners, TPF Group, sold the company in 2009.[184] Went into receivership under Blackstone Group, sold to Tahua Partners in 2021. |
South America
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| Country/territory | Year entered |
No. of restaurants [2] |
Master franchisee |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 1989 | 120 | Fast Food Sudamericana S.A.[185] | |
| Bolivia | 1999 | 18 | Samuel Doria Medina[186] | |
| Brazil | 2001 | 970 | ZAMP S.A. | Operates with a territorial franchises system[187] |
| Chile | 1994 | 86 | Fast Food Sudamericana S.A.[188] | |
| Colombia | 2008 | 44 | Kinco S.A.[189] | Originally operated during 1980s. |
| Ecuador | 1982[190] | 25 | Resrap/Alicosta Bk Holding[191] | |
| French Guiana | 2025 | 1 | Rudisa International N.V. | First restaurant announced for Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni (Hyper U); recruitment underway. Not listed by RBI as of 31 Dec 2024.[192] |
| Guyana | 2017 | 6 | ? | |
| Paraguay | 1995 | 42 | Grupo Vierci[193] | |
| Peru | 1993[194] | 37 | Sigdelo S.A. | |
| Suriname | 2008 | 2 | Multiple | The first outlet is located in the capital city of Paramaribo.[195] |
| Uruguay | 2008 | 26 | Adiser S.A.[196] | |
| Venezuela | 1980 | 15 | Grupo Rica |
A Burger King restaurant in Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Former markets
| Country/territory | Year entered |
Year closed |
Year re-entered |
Master franchisee |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afghanistan | ? | 2021 | Army & Air Force Exchange Service | Operated only for US troops in Bagram Airfield, closed down in 2021 after US military withdrawal. | |
| Australia | 1997 (by name) | 2003 | Trans-Pacific Foods (TPF) | Operated from 1997 to 2003 due to violating franchise agreements; all stores re-branded in 2003 as Hungry Jack's.[197] 10,000th location opened in Sydney.[198] | |
| Azerbaijan | 2018 | 2023 | 2024 | TAB Gıda Sanayi ve Ticaret | 4 Burger King locations in Deniz Mall, Park Bulvar, 28 Mall and Ganjlik Mall suddenly closed down in February 2023 without warning. In February 2024, Burger King reopened. Currently, only available through Bolt Food. |
| Costa Rica | 1992 | 2015 | 2016 | ? | 29 restaurants were available in Costa Rica from 1992, but they all closed in October 2015, due to financial issues.[199][200] Reopened in June 2016.[citation needed] |
| Finland | 1982 | 1985 | 2013 | ? | Burger King operated in Helsinki and Tampere for a short period in the 1980s, then came back and opened the first new restaurant in Finland in 2013.[201] |
| France | 1980 | 1998 | 2012 | ? | Closed French outlets in 1998 (most of restaurants bought by Quick and McDonald's), and a return had begun at Marseille Airport on 22 December 2012.[202] |
| Greece | 1997 | 2014 | 2018 | ? | It is unclear when Burger King first entered Greece but some articles stated that it was in 1997. The company returned to Greece in 2018. |
| Iceland | 2004 | 2008 | Tankur.ehf[203] | Left on 31 December 2008.[204] | |
| Indonesia | 1986 | 1998 | 2007 | PT Bekasari Pratama Food (original) | Closed because of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Reentered on 26 April 2007. |
| Iraq | 2003 | 2011 | 2019 | ? | Closed due to US troops pulling out. |
| Israel | 1994 | 2010 | 2016 | Burger King Israel | Closed on 9 May 2010. Rebranded as Burgeranch.[49] In June 2015, the chain announced that it will relaunch in Israel. The first new restaurant is located on Rabin Square, Tel Aviv. |
| Jordan | 2007 | 2021 | Jordan American Food Co. | Halal[205] | |
| Macau | 2007 | ? | North Asia Strategic Holdings, Ltd | Entry announced in 2007.[206] | |
| Myanmar | 2016 | ? | Minor Food Group | Opened at Yangon International Airport on 1 July 2016.[207][208] | |
| Nicaragua | 2008 | 2018 | 2020 | ? | Reentered in 2020. |
| Pakistan | 2013 | 2022 | MCR Group | Opened in Karachi on 5 October 2013; operations suspended and all outlets closed in 2022; nine outlets at time of sale; planned relaunch under Maaks International.[209][210][211] | |
| Poland | 1992 | 2001 | 2007 | Rex Concepts CEE (McWin)[110] | 78[212] |
| Romania | 2008 | 2012 | 2019 | Atlantic Restaurant System | Opened in April 2008; closed in 2012 due to bankruptcy. Expanded again in 2019 by opening restaurants in Bucharest. |
| Saint Lucia | 2010 | ? | Former presence in Rodney Bay; not listed by RBI as of 31 Dec 2024.[213] | ||
| Serbia | 1991 | 1999 | ? | Operated in Belgrade and Novi Sad. Closed in March 1999 due to the Kosovo War. | |
| Slovakia | 2010 | 2011 | 2018 | ? | Opened in March 2010; closed in December 2011 due to bankruptcy. Reopened in 2018 under license from AmRest. |
| Slovenia | 2011 | 2020 | 2025 | Marché | Opened in March 2011; closed in 2020. Returned in early 2025. |
| Ukraine | 2006 | 2006 | ? | Operated in Kyiv and Odesa for a short period in 2006. | |
| U.S. Virgin Islands | 1983 | 1997 | ? | Left both St. Croix and St. Thomas in 1997. | |
International subsidiaries
Burger King has approximately 20 foreign subsidiaries to oversee operations in the markets it does business in.
| Subsidiary | Country/territory | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Administracion de Comidas Rapidas, S.A. de C.V. | Mexico | |
| BK Argentina Servicios, S.A. | Argentina | |
| BK Asiapac (Japan) Y.K. | Japan | Oversees franchise operations in Japan |
| BK Asiapac, Pte. Ltd. | Singapore | Oversees franchise operations in east Asia, the Pacific rim and Oceania except Australia[11][12] |
| BK Grundstücksverwaltungs Beteiligungs GmbH & Co. KG | Germany | |
| BK Venezuela Servicios, C.A. | Venezuela | |
| BK (Hong Kong) Development Co. Limited | Hong Kong | |
| Burger King (Gibraltar) Ltd. | Gibraltar | |
| Burger King (Luxembourg) S.a.r.l. | Luxembourg | |
| Burger King (Shanghai) Restaurant Company Ltd. | China | |
| Burger King (United Kingdom) Ltd. | United Kingdom | |
| Burger King SEE S.A. | Belgium | Subsidiary of Burger King Luxembourg; master franchisee for the Burger King Brand in Italy, Poland, Greece and Romania[214] |
| Burger King A.B | Sweden | |
| Burger King B.V. | Netherlands | |
| Burger King Restaurant Operations of Canada, Inc. | Canada | |
| Burger King de Puerto Rico, Inc. | Puerto Rico | |
| Burger King do Brasil Assessoria a Restaurantes Ltda. | Brazil | |
| Burger King España S.L.U. | Spain | |
| Burger King Europe GmbH | Switzerland | Oversees franchise operations in Europe, Africa and west Asia |
| Burger King Gıda Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Şirketi | Turkey | |
| Burger King Interamerica, LLC | Florida | |
| Burger King Israel Ltd. | Israel | |
| Burger King Italia, S.r.L | Italy | |
| Burger King Korea Ltd. | South Korea | |
| Burger King (RUS) LLC | Russia | |
| Burger King Sweden, Inc. | Sweden |
Notes
- 1000+ locations in China, 1000+ in Brazil and 500+ in Russia. See citations below.