So what happens if they hold a soccer match on the Toronto waterfront, and no one is allowed to overpay for beer?
We’re all about to find out.
Seems some over-stressed BMO Field beer jockey dealt froth to a teenager last season, and Ontario liquor laws must be appeased.
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The fans, of course, have known about this forever. They just didn’t know which game was going to be affected. Many had set up contingency plans, mostly involving an extra hour or two at the pub pre-game.
Then, suddenly, it was announced the taps would be dry for – the Houston game. A one PM start! Precious little time for increased imbibing. Plus! Security is being increased for the match. Fans are being warned to get there early, because firewater-frisking will be the rule of the day.
Ingenious fans won’t be troubled at all. Thems that wants to will always find a way to get a drink. But lesser intellectual lights will be caught and tossed out, and it won’t be pretty. That’s the kind of thing that can really fire up tensions in the south end – but without brewski to fuel the outrage, perhaps it all washes out.
And you know what? As much as I’m a free enterprise guy, I just flat refuse to pay ten bucks for a beer. Okay, I’m working on game days, so it isn’t an issue – but unless it’s a Guinness draft in Ireland or a huge icy mug of German suds in Munich, no glass of beer is worth that anyway.
A lot of money will be saved on Saturday – no doubt to immediately be spent at the city’s many soccer pubs as Canada kicks off against Honduras in the Gold Cup quarterfinals, just two hours after TFC and Houston get done kicking each other’s shins.
Beer at BMO is most vital as a Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment revenue stream. The fans love it, but most will do just fine without.
It’s just business, in other words.
Look for some great, inspiring stories of TFC-fan ingenuity when it’s all over. The best “how I got a drink on Saturday” tale in the comments section below wins a busted vuvuzela and the fleeting admiration of dozens.
Onward!