SEC's Sankey: Stadium Alcohol Sales Debate Ongoing

HOMEWOOD, Ala. — SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said Monday he expects the conference's stance on alcohol sales at stadiums to be subject to ongoing debate and dialogue.

Currently, fans wishing to sip an alcoholic beverage in general seating areas of SEC venues are out of luck.

SEC rules prevent alcoholic beverages from being sold or consumed in stadiums except for private or leased areas of the stadium, such as premium seating areas where alcohol is permitted.

Debate on the rule has been ongoing since last year, and the topic of alcohol sales probably will come up at the SEC spring meetings in May in Destin, Fla.

"We had a healthy dialogue among our members (last year). We've had some of that continue," Sankey said at the Associated Press Sports Editors Southeast Region conference.

"From a stadium-wide standpoint, there are those who think that, let's just take all the restraint off at the conference level," Sankey added. "But that's not unanimous, and I'm not sure it's, right now, a majority position."

Alcohol is mentioned at various points of a 316-page Neyland Stadium renovation planning document dated last September. The document notes the possibility of selling alcohol in general seating areas in the future and touches on infrastructure needed to make that a possibility.

"The UT campus is currently a 'dry' campus but the expectation is for this to change over the next several years. ... University will need to determine how the future of the (campus) alcohol policy will/will not affect future design," the document states.

But the campus alcohol policy is a moot point unless the SEC changes its alcohol rule.

The $340 million stadium renovation will consist of two phases, the first of which will focus on expansion and renovation of the south concourse. A start date for project construction has not been announced.

Some schools in other conferences, like West Virginia, Texas, Ohio State and Wake Forest, sell alcohol in general seating areas.

Changing the SEC rule would require a majority vote of the conference's 14 member schools' presidents or chancellors.

"I think the responsible way to handle this is continue the dialogue, see how we can manage oversight properly but still make sure our stadiums are family friendly," Sankey said.

Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne said during an interview last week with WJOX that the conference's alcohol rule is an important one to evaluate.

"I know there are some schools that are pushing for, basically, the autonomy for you as a university to decide what you want to do rather than have it be on what you do collectively as a league," Byrne told the Birmingham radio station. "Right now, it's a league practice. You can allow alcohol in some of your premium areas, but that's about it. But I know there's institutions that would like to be able to say, 'Hey, let it be our decision in what we do.'"

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