Charging $17 for Modelo at the National Championship Game should be a crime

When you write about sports for a long time you grow accustomed to obscene concessions pricing at premiere sporting events, but even as desensitized as I’ve become to price gouging I cannot believe this.

I have absolutely no problem paying a premium for beer. We’ve all done it at concerts and events, and I still remember the look on my wife’s face when I told her I spent $14 on a single Mikkeller 1,000 IBU, because I had to know what it tasted like. It’s a question of expectations and where that gap meets with the reality.

The thing is: Modelo is delicious. I’m not going to get all beer snobby and yuck someone’s yum. It’s a great “chill outside while grilling” beer, and the older I get the more I appreciate those. That said, it’s not a premium beer. Modelo has never been a premium beer. Even the makers of Modelo wouldn’t call Modelo a premium beer.

The issue is that my expectations for Modelo pricing come from my local Mexican place, which not only make killer tacos al pastor, but have an everyday offer of $2.99 Modelo’s, and $4.50 if you’re feeling froggy and want to get a colossal 32 oz glass.

So when I see SoFi stadium charging for one single Modelo the same as I can get 5.75 for at a restaurant, then it’s going to make me irrationally angry. There’s no point mapping grocery store case prices with stadium concessions, but in a direct venue-to-venue comparison I cannot fathom how they’re charging this.

Also that whole “Served in a Ball Aluminum Cup” thing is a damn scam too. Just give me a big ass can. It’s more spill-proof, faster for the concessions workers, and I refuse to believe there’s a huge fundamental difference in draft Modelo, to canned Modelo.

People are going to pay it, because of course they are. If you’ve already ponied up the cash to watch the natty then another $17 isn’t going to hurt too bad — but as an outsider looking in I am furious.