Beer and football; two pleasures inextricably linked, but at a time when fans are tightening their belts and trying to cut down on frivolous spending it seems that the evil, money-grabbing football clubs in the Premier League are conducting a booze shakedown.That's the latest news out of England, where a study by the Liberal Democratic party has found that only three of England's Premier League clubs are charging below the national average of £2.96 ($4.37) for a pint on stadium grounds. In fact, the average pint price in the Premiership is £3.19 (or $4.71).
But wait, it gets worse!
They claimed West Brom could be making a whopping £117,000 each season with Villa making about £60,000 per season - just from the extra profits which come from the high cost of beer.That's the news from the Birmingham Post.
Profits from beer sales at stadiums? That IS an outrage. No wonder the government is getting involved. Of course if you're reading this in the United States, you're probably wondering what they're complaining about.
Back in 2007, Sports Illustrated put together a survey titled "NFL Fan Value Experience" in which they ranked ticket prices, food and souvenirs, accessibility, team performance, tailgating, stadium atmosphere, and neighborhood. Included in the food and souvenir section of that survey were beer prices.
Not every NFL team serves beer in a convieneint 16 ounce pint, though. So we've got to do a little math to find the average NFL pint price:
No surprises here as the NFL once again offers an amazing value (sarcasm!) - a $5.47 average pint - only 76 cents more than the pints in England. One thing worth looking at is the highest NFL pint price - $7.00 at LP Field, home of the Tennessee Titans. The highest pint price in the Premiership? Chelsea FC with a (converted) $5.92 pint.
But are we comparing apples to apples? One way to be sure it to compare the pint price at Old Trafford, Home of Manchester United, and the Edward Jones Dome, home of the St. Louis Rams. Both teams are sure to be pouring Budweiser - as the official beer of Manchester United, no other beer is being poured at their ground. It's also safe to assume that the very same Budweiser recipe is being poured in St. Louis, home of AB. The difference? In the home of AB, that pint will run you $5.33. In Manchester, it's only (converted) $4.44.
Regardless of where you live, you're likely to be ripped off if you're buying a beer at the game. Even at $4.00 (the cheapest price you'll find a pint in both the EPL and NFL), there's a couple hundred percent of markup in your pint price. When was the last time you paid $4.00 for a Budweiser in a bar?
Someone call the government.
Sources:
2007 NFL Fan Value Experience Ratings at SI.com
Liberal Dems Accuse Villa and West Brom of Beer Rip-off
Counting the Cost of a Pint
Currency Calculations completed 12/03/08 at XE.com
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More NFL/Beer reading here.
Interesting. Now you should take into consideration quality of the brew being served. Here our choices are most likely only Bud or Miller. How about there?
ReplyDeleteCheers!
The Beerbuddha
Now this is the kind of detailed, thoughtful, & critical investigation you guys should be doing! Great work!
ReplyDeleteThanks!
ReplyDeleteWe'd love to do more, but unfortunately we rarely find something worth the investigation.
If you've got any ideas, don't be afraid to drop us a line.