NEW: Tuscaloosa approves beer + wine sales at Bryant-Denny Stadium—find out the next steps

Can I get a Roll Tide? After a Tuscaloosa City Council meeting on Tuesday, August 16, The University of Alabama’s (UA) Bryant-Denny Stadium is one step closer to alcohol sales, right on time for the upcoming fall football season. Read on for details, including what needs to happen before you can crack open a cold one while watching the Tide.

Liquor license approved ✅

This highly anticipated decision comes after plenty of speculation surrounding whether or not alcohol will be sold this year at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

To sell alcohol at the venue, Bryant-Denny Stadium needs approval from the Tuscaloosa City Council and the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board (ABC).

According to Tuscaloosa News, Tuscaloosa City Council has approved a liquor license for UA’s concessionaire—Levy Premium Foodservice LP. Now, all that’s needed is final approval from the Alabama ABC Board.

Overcoming the roadblocks

The topic was circulating this winter as Coleman Collesium put alcohol sales efforts on hold. Tuscaloosa City Council changed its service fee policy back in February, adding an additional fee to all ticketed events with alcohol sales.

Back in June, UA’s Athletics Director Greg Bryne announced that they would reconsider alcohol sales at events after the university reached a deal with the city. The new agreement replaced the service fee policy with a $250,000 donation from UA to the city each year from 2024-2028, designated for Tuscaloosa police officers and firefighters.

The agreement paved the way for alcohol sales at Bryant-Denny. If approved by the Alabama ABC Board, alcohol sales will be enforced with strict requirements from the SEC, including:

• Alcoholic beverages can only be sold at designated stationary locations
• An ID is required at every point of sale
• Beer and wine only; no hard liquor or mixed drinks may be sold in public seating areas
• Limits must be established on the number of drinks purchased at one time by an individual
• Alcohol must be dispensed into cups
• Staff are required to take safe-server training, and training on how to handle high-risk situations
• Designated stop times for sale and distribution of alcohol must be enforced.

For now, we’ll have to await the Alabama ABC Board’s final decision.

How do you feel about alcohol sales at Bryant-Denny Stadium? Tag us @thebamabuzz and let us know!