BOTTOMS UP! Alcohol sales approved for Mizzou Football games

Tiger fans, it’s official.

Beer and wine will now be sold at Missouri football games starting this season “in accordance with the Southeastern Conference’s newly adopted regulations,” the school announced Friday.

The ban on alcohol sales by the SEC — in place since the 1970s — was repealed in May, and speculation around Columbia suggested the school would soon approve the sale of alcohol. Friday, the school made official what many had long considered inevitable.

“Since the SEC staff established its working group to study this issue in 2018, our staff has been working with campus leadership, including MU Chief of Police Doug Schwandt, and our Wellness Center team, to develop a detailed and thoughtful alcoholic beverage sales plan for Mizzou in the event that the SEC position on this issue were to change,” Mizzou Director of Athletics Jim Sterk said. “Based on the experiences of other institutions, we expect Mizzou football fans will appreciate this new option. We also expect alcoholic beverage sales at Memorial Stadium will help reduce the incidents associated with binge drinking that can occur on game day. We consider that a win-win for our fans.”

The school consulted a number of groups — including the MU Wellness Center and MUPD — and it looked to come to a quick decision regarding alcohol sales. Citing statistics from West Virginia and Ohio State that showed the schools saw decreasing numbers of incidents at games since they started selling alcohol, Missouri felt it was smart to do the same.

The decision comes with a few caveats, though. Obviously, only those who are 21 and over can buy alcohol, and they can only buy two drinks at a time. Also, alcohol sales will end at the conclusion of the third quarter.

The decision only pertains to Faurot Field right now, and not to other Mizzou athletic venues yet. The school will monitor the sales’ impact on football games before approving it for other events.

But still, with the decision now official, we can only hope that Faurot will see packed stands for the 2019 season and beyond.