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University of Minnesota Fans Want Their Booze Back

Mar 23, 2010, 3:45 PM UTC

The University of Minnesota opened TCF Bank Stadium last season, bringing football to campus, albeit with the dubious idea that it would be played outdoors. At the very least, if you’re going to make people sit outdoors, give them some alcohol to forget the fact that they might lose a toe to frost bite before halftime. Alas, it was not to be in the first season of Minnesota’s new on-campus stadium. There were no liquor sales, which was not only a gigantic buzz kill to those in the stands, but also the folks in the accounting department. According to the Pioneer Press, the ban slowed sales of premium suites and cost the school $1 million.â†µ

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â†µâ†µAfter sitting through a cold, sober season of Minnesota football that might’ve cost them that much money, some people are interested in giving the liquor ban at TCF a second look.â†µ

â†µâ†µâ‡¥In 2008, the university’s Board of Regents approved the sale of liquor in premium seating areas at the stadium, which opened in the fall. â†µâ‡¥â†µâ‡¥But legislators were concerned that offering liquor only in the pricey seats smacked of elitism. They inserted language in May that would require alcohol sales throughout the stadium or not at all. â†µâ‡¥
â†µâ‡¥â†µâ‡¥Because they didn’t want to make liquor generally available for sale at an on-campus stadium, some regents said the law forced them into a ban they didn’t want. Regents approved the liquor ban in June, but several members said they wanted to ask lawmakers to reconsider their position. The bill does away with the all-or-nothing provision. â†µâ‡¥
â†µâ‡¥â†µâ‡¥It also adds a requirement that revenues generated under the new liquor license “be dedicated for meritorious scholarships for men and women athletes attending the University of Minnesota.”â†µâ‡¥

â†µâ†µâ†µSee, you’re doing it for the kids! And for the record, University of Minnesota officials have “no formal position” on the bill, according to the report.â†µ

â†µâ†µDrink or don’t drink, but I tend to think that banning alcohol as a whole from a venue just encourages ridiculous binge drinking by the student population prior to the game. Anyone who spent time on a college campus probably knows this to be true, even if they didn’t engage in it personally. Besides, with Southern Cal coming to visit TCF for the third game next season, some folks might need a drink while the ball is in play.â†µ

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This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.

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