Southeastern Conference sports fans, rejoice!
Starting August 1, 2019, SEC college campuses will be able to sell beer and wine to general admission seats, lifting a ban in place for 30 years. Previously, stadiums were able to sell premium seats allowing alcohol consumption, but general admission seats were alcohol-free.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey says the conference discussed lifting the alcohol ban frequently in recent years. Ultimately, the organization decided to allow colleges to make the decision for themselves.
“As a conference, we have been observant of trends in the sale and consumption of alcohol at collegiate sporting events and have drawn upon the experiences and insights of our member schools which have responsibly established limited alcohol sales within controlled spaces and premium seating areas,” Sankey told CBS Sports. “We remain the only conference to set forth league-wide standards for the responsible management of the sale of alcoholic beverages.”
The lift affects all colleges in the Southeastern Conference including University of Alabama, University of Florida, University of Georgia, and University of Kentucky.
Of course, there are a few caveats. Only certain locations in each stadium will be allowed to sell alcohol. Staff will be required to complete a training program, and booze sales will be cut off at a certain time, such as at the end of the third quarter for football and women’s basketball; the second-half 12-minute TV timeout in men’s basketball; the seventh inning in baseball; and no later than 75 percent through the game for all other sports.
According to InsideHigherEd.com, many schools that started selling alcohol at their stadiums, such as West Virginia, have found it increases revenue and reduces alcohol related incidents.
