NU Regents consider beer sales at Memorial Stadium, Devaney

Husker football and volleyball fans will have the opportunity to enjoy a cold beer, wine or other alcoholic drink while taking in the action beginning in the 2025 season.

Next week, University of Nebraska Board of Regents will consider a sweeping change to university policy allowing for alcohol sales at all athletic contests, rather than require approval on a case-by-case basis.

The change would bring the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in line with policies and practices at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, where alcohol has long been available for Maverick hockey games.

The proposal will go before regents on Oct. 4. The meeting is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. in Room 120 of the Regional Engagement Center at the University of Nebraska at Kearney.

NU President Jeff Gold said university leaders have “put a great deal of thought and care” into allowing alcohol sales at athletic events in a way that makes sense for fans, student-athletes and the university.

“This is the next step as we consider how best to meet our fans’ expectations, carefully monitor safety and at the same time bring Nebraska in line with our peers in today’s changing college athletics landscape,” Gold said.

Regents previously rescinded a 1999 ban on the consumption of alcohol at Husker events in February 2022, allowing for administrators to bring approval for beer and liquor sales at UNL venues on a piecemeal basis.

Over the next two years, the board approved beer sales at the 2022 Big Ten Conference Wrestling Championships, as well as for Husker men’s and women’s basketball games, all at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Earlier this year, NU regents agreed to turn on the taps at Haymarket Park for Husker baseball and softball games, and also gave the OK to include alcohol sales in the university’s bid to host the 2027 NCAA Bowling Championships at Sun Valley Lanes.

Memorial Stadium, as well as the Devaney Center, has remained on the periphery of the conversation, however, even as the rest of the Big Ten Conference has surpassed the Big Red.

Currently, the century-old stadium is the only venue in the conference where fans cannot purchase beer, wine or other spirits during a football game. The University of Michigan and the University of Wisconsin-Madison made the switch earlier this year and Northwestern University has worked alcohol sales into its plan for a new stadium.

Regents have previously approve alcohol sales during two special events: the Garth Brooks concert in 2021 and the world record-setting Volleyball Day in Nebraska last year.

Husker Athletic Director Troy Dannen said the sale of beer, wine, and cocktails will not be contingent upon a proposed $450 million renovation to Memorial Stadium, as was previously suggested, but rather as part of bringing in a caterer to manage concessions at its venues moving forward.

“We don’t need to redo the stadium to do this; we can retrofit things to get by,” Dannen said in a phone interview. “Part of the (request for proposals) with concessions will be to do the infrastructure upgrades before next year.”

Those improvements, which include additional coolers, heated spaces and food preparation areas, will be needed whether or not the Huskers decide to make beer available at football games, Dannen said.

But the expectations from fans have changed in recent years, added Dannen, who has witnessed alcohol sales firsthand at previous jobs at the University of Washington, Tulane University, as well as the University of Northern Iowa.

“Any more, fans have come to expect every amenity they have available to them at home,” Dannen said. “Today’s fans expect as many of the creature comforts at home as possible.”

Many of the caterers who have expressed interest in NU provide services at large stadium venues across the country, Dannen said, where they sell beer, wine, hard sodas and other products in aluminum cans.

What kinds of alcohol drinks will be available to fans will be determined at a later date, he added.

“(The caterers) do this in 90,000-capacity buildings all over the country. They know what sells and what doesn’t sell,” Dannen said.

The contract for the caterer will likely be finalized by the end of the year, with improvements made throughout the stadium set to begin “as close as possible to the last game” of the season.

There have been no major alcohol-related incidents that have occurred at any Husker venue since the regents rescinded the previous ban two years ago, the university said.

Dannen said Husker Athletics anticipates the department would generate between $3 million and $4 million in gross revenue by allowing sales at both Memorial Stadium and the Devaney Center.

The new revenue would likely be returned to Husker athletes as part of an antitrust lawsuit against the NCAA, which will see student-athletes begin to receive a share of the revenue generated by their schools.

“Any opportunity we have to generate revenue to offset additional expenses is important,” Dannen said. “Every athletic department in the country is finding a way to create new revenue streams.”