Terrace Equality - Relaxation of Alcohol Restrictions in Football

The licensing laws that prevent alcohol being consumed on football terraces and the visual selling of it in corporate areas are borne out of a partly outdated view of the game. F.C. Business asks the Home Office for its latest views and explains why the time is right for change.

 ALEX MILLER

For years, football clubs and their fans in England and Wales have been restricted by a draconian law that makes it illegal to consume alcohol within view of the pitch. The law covers all “designated sports grounds”, but is not applied to any other games or events, including both rugby codes, cricket or music concerts, even when they take place in football stadia.

The Sporting Events (Control of Alcohol, etc) Act 1985 was introduced with the aim of tackling poor fan behaviour that had become widespread through the 1970’s and 80’s. It has been amended by the Licensing Act 2003, the Public Order Act 1986 and through secondary legislation.

It makes an offence of possessing alcohol within view of the pitch during the period of the match and also prohibits the possession of alcohol on the way to matches on football special coaches and trains and makes it an offence to be drunk on them.

The Hillsborough Disaster in 1989 compounded the political view that hardhitting laws were required. Indeed, the political ramifications from Hillsborough mean there is little appetite among Ministers to change the laws. They are acutely aware that any future disaster would be too much to stomach, particularly if links to alcohol were established.

But modern all-seater stadia, complete with CCTV, family areas and no fences, are stewarded and policed better than ever before, while crowd control is better understood, meaning the law is not only discriminatory against football, it is also out-of-date.

In some ways the law is also illogical. It does not contribute to fan safety and actually encourages binge drinking, as some fans race to consume as much as they can before a game and at half time.

The anomaly is that it is perfectly legal for someone to continue to drink on the concourse inside the stadium while the game is in progress, as long as it is not within sight of the pitch. It also means supporters often miss the last few minutes and first few minutes either side of half time to queue at concessionary stands. Just consider how often seats are empty just after half time at Wembley Stadium as an example.

Blackburn Rovers Safety Officer and Football Safety Officers Association Chairman, John Newsham, tells F.C. Business: “Football has had its problems in the past, but it has cleaned itself up and safety aspects have improved greatly.”

Newsham met Premier League Head of Supporter Relations, Cathy Long last month to discuss the issue. It is a topic that will be revisited in their next meeting in a couple of month’s time.

He adds: “The current situation confuses supporters. For example, the law says you can sell alcohol at various times, but not all teams sell to away fans. As a result, they often don’t know if they are going to be able to buy alcohol or not. What this does is encourage fans to arrive late, meaning you can have 4,000 out of 6,000 away fans all arriving at the turnstiles just five minutes before kickoff.”

The Football Supporters’ Federation Chair Malcolm Clarke adds: “This legislation is outdated. What does it achieve? If there was a total alcohol ban we would oppose it, but at least it would be consistent. Drinking on a concourse, but not in your seat, makes no sense.

“What happens inside grounds is that because it is a criminal offence to consume alcohol within sight of the pitch, there are often last-minute rushes into stands from the concourse at the start of games, as fans charge in from the pub, rather than them coming in an orderly fashion. From a crowd management point of view it is not sensible, in fact it is stupid and counter-productive.

“Football fans are being discriminated against and the law is disproportionate. In rugby it is OK to drink in your seats, often in the very same seats as football fans are not allowed to drink in. It is absurd.

“It is also an offence to drink on official coaches and mini-buses going to football, but not in rugby or cricket. It should be left to the coach trip parties to decide. There has been no proper risk analysis for what this Act achieves and whether it is necessary. The law is an ass and should be abolished. It is a crude way to tackle the issue and serves no purpose. It doesn’t reduce drinking; it just means fans drink in a shorter time. It has nothing going for it”.

The majority of clubs do believe the Act should be reviewed or even scrapped and some have explored the possibility of entering dialogue with Ministers on the issue. Despite this, many clubs have not been prepared to debate the subject in public.

A commercial director from one Premiership club tells F.C. Business: ‘Alcohol consumption in the sport is an interesting issue and I believe it should be considered from the fans’ point of view and that of their match day experience in general. Why should the match day experience be any less in football than in any other sport? Stewarding and crowd control are much better than they were when this legislation came into force.”

Chris Tinbergen, Leicester City Head of Consumer Sales, tells F.C. Business: “Speaking as a fan, you don’t enjoy the same experience as in rugby union if you can’t have a beer while watching the game.

“It is an outdated piece of legislation which should be reviewed. A 15-minute window at half time simply encourages fans to throw their booze down and is not responsible. Binge drinking in a short space of time can’t be right.”

He adds: “There has been a relaxation of the drinking laws away from football, with the removal of the 11pm curfew, maybe it is time for people to look at what is a ridiculous part of football.” There are aspects of the Act that produce simply ridiculous situations. It is common to see curtains being drawn across hospitality boxes as drinks are served. One is entitled to ask whether that is really necessary as it simply reduces the match day experience of VIP supporters and guests.

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Football stadia are licensed premises and as such, there are sound logical reasons why they should be treated in the same way as pubs, with individual clubs ultimately ensuring their customers drink responsibly. Almost every other country allows the consumption of alcohol in stands, while in Germany they moderate the situation by serving low strength beers.

F.C. Business has learnt that the FA’s Sanctions and Registrations Committee recently came close to approving minutes proposing a total ban of alcohol in all stadia - by accident. The wording of the minutes proposed the ban, instead of proposing that amateur football be subject to the same rules as the top end of the game. When a member pointed out the incorrect wording, the Chairman agreed to take the minutes back and the matter looks to have been quietly dropped.

As well as improving the match day experience for many fans, there are also commercial benefits to be enjoyed from relaxing the law. Many football league club attendances are down a little on previous years. A rule change may help bring numbers back up, so long as clubs manage the issue carefully.

Many clubs acknowledge the importance of attracting fans to stay in and around their stadiums for longer periods on match days. Simply allowing club bars to open immediately after matches would help achieve this aim.

The Leicester Tigers rugby union team attracts an average of 20,000 fans to their home games at Welford Road. Because the club operates under more relaxed legislation, the club opens its bars two hours before kick-off and continues serving throughout the game and after the match has ended. Several hundred home fans, mixed with away fans, generally remain at the stadium long after the final whistle for as long as they wish. The club even provides live bands in the main bar during the evening. This scenario is pretty typical at Premiership rugby stadia and provides a revenue stream missed by football. A Tigers spokesman says a substantial stream of revenue is generated before and after the matches.

Despite the Act’s unpopularity within the game, Minister for Crime, Prevention and Antisocial Behaviour Reduction, Baroness Browning, tells F.C. Business: “We know that the majority of football fans are responsible and that football related violence and disorder in England and Wales has been falling for a number of years.”

“We have no plans to change the current law but expect police to continue working with fans and to use all the tools at their disposal to ensure that football matches remain a safer environment for all, setting a benchmark for the rest of the world.”

There are of course a number of aspects within the law that should remain in place such as the ban on fans bringing their own alcohol into the ground and the requirement on the club that an individual is not drunk while trying to enter the ground or during the match.

We shouldn’t forget the troubles football has experienced in the past, but now is surely the time to acknowledge the considerable progress that has been made in the game and to consider affording supporters in England and Wales the same rights as attendees of all other sporting and entertainment events.

More more information email Ryan McKnight - ryan@fcbusiness.co.uk

Taken from Issue 54 of F.C. Business Magazine

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