COMMENT: After plans to scrap the ban on pitchside booze at football, what if we really are just better off without?
Beer Burnham
Andy Burnham's is planning to lift the ban on pitchside booze at football matches (Image: Getty)
Does anybody really want this? In their heart of hearts, can anybody who goes to watch football on a regular basis really say they want this?
It isn’t that the concept is bad. Football fans have been overpoliced, both in and out of stadiums, for decades now. The stereotypes that linger from the days of hooliganism haven’t been shaken, and as the times have changed, those perceptions have stayed the same.
Conceptually, it is a bit wild that spectators at rugby games, tennis matches, athletic meets, and basically every other live sporting event can enjoy a tipple in the terrace, but football fans are told no. In practice though, maybe it’s better that way?
Football, from a spectator's point of view, is a much more emotionally charged sport. In rugby, fans are asked to stay quiet when an opposition player is taking a penalty. Imagine telling Celtic fans to shush if a Rangers player was lining up for a last-minute spot-kick, or Sunderland fans to keep quiet when a Newcastle attacker was lining up from 12 yards.
At its core, football is better for that. That buzz, that feeling, that drive is what drags us back in every week for a nine-month spell every year, and a four-week stint in the summer every other year.
So maybe, after all these years, bringing back alcohol consumption to the stands isn’t needed after all? Maybe it will send the wrong message? And maybe it will lead to some numpties taking advantage of it?
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Football fans in England aren't allowed to drink in view of the pitch (Image: Getty)
We’ve all scoffed in horror at the dreaded Box Park (other ghastly drinking establishments are available) videos every time England are in action at an international tournament. The forced celebrations leading to buckets of overpriced beer being launched into the air.
(Side note: the only good thing about VAR is the look of disappointment on these football fan LARPers’ faces when a goal is ruled out after they’ve launched a full pint into the air.)
It’s one thing doing this in a gentrified warehouse in front of a big screen watching the match; it’s another thing to actually do it inside a stadium. So maybe we are better off without being soaked in Carling and Carlsberg?
There are genuine benefits to scrapping the pitch-side alcohol ban. It would ease the half-time rush, firstly of buying a pint, and secondly of trying to down it in whatever time remains before the restart.
But there are so many more ways we can humanise football fans after decades of stigma that don’t carry the risk of being soaked from head to toe in lager. Hey, Mr. Burnham, how about we sort the ticket prices out first?