Alcohol Sales for the General Public at SEC Football Games isn't Happening Anytime Soon

In the SEC it just means more…unless you’re talking about alcohol.

For the umpteenth year in a row, league officials punted on removing the stadium-wide ban of alcohol sales at SEC schools.  Speaking at the SEC Spring Meetings in Destin, Florida, commissioner Greg Sankey provided a statement with little confidence that a significant change will happen.

“There has been ongoing dialogue,” Sankey said.  “That’s not a topic that exists only when the newspaper articles are written two weeks before Destin every year. But that hasn’t produced change at this point among our membership.”

To remove the (stupid) rule, it would require a majority vote from the league’s 14 presidents/chancellors.  The Knoxville News Sentinel spoke with athletic directors from Florida and Alabama, neither of which believe it’s happening anytime soon.  When Sankey was asked if a vote could potentially happen, he replied:

“It hasn’t happened so far,” Sankey said. “Perhaps every day we’re closer, but that doesn’t mean we are.”

The SEC’s stance on alcohol sales could not be more hypocritical.  According to the SEC, alcohol is not bad if you’re rich.  If you can afford to sit in a suite, drink all you want.  If you’re too poor, sorry Charlie.  Keep those suds in the parking lot.

Officials who want to keep alcohol out of the hands of the general public will argue that booze in stadiums will inflame bad behavior.  They also might believe it goes against the values of a conservative south.  However, if people can’t buy booze from their seats, they’re either going to get too much before the game, or sneak it into the stands.  If you hold a moral opposition against any alcohol inside stadiums, than you’re a hypocrite for allowing those in the suites to consume alcohol.

As Sankey mentioned, this topic is brought up every year at the SEC Spring Meetings, and every year nothing happens.  Meanwhile, the league is losing out on millions in alcohol revenue.  At this point, keeping the alcohol ban makes absolutely no sense.

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