Nebraska Athletics photo
The Nebraska Board of Regents will consider a measure to allow alcohol sales at all University of Nebraska sporting events at its next board meeting Oct. 4. This measure would include Husker Football games at Memorial Stadium and volleyball matches at the Devaney Center. Currently, alcohol sales at campus events have to be approved on a case-by-case basis.
Already, Husker fans can buy and consume alcohol beverages at Nebraska men’s and women’s basketball games at Pinnacle Bank Arena and baseball and softball games at the Haymarket Park complex. Alcohol sales were banned from all Nebraska sporting events in 1999, but the regents rescinded the measure in February 2022 to allow beer and liquor sales at UNL venues on a case-by-case basis. Alcohol sales were approved for the 2022 Big Ten Wrestling Championships at Pinnacle Bank Arena, and were further expanded to Husker basketball, baseball and softball games.
Selling alcohol at football games would bring Nebraska into line with the rest of the state’s major athletic programs and the rest of Big Ten Football. Already, fans can purchase alcohol at University of Nebraska-Omaha basketball and hockey and Creighton University basketball and baseball. In addition, after Michigan and Wisconsin approved alcohol sales at football games this year, and Northwestern worked plans for alcohol sales into plans for a new stadium, Memorial Stadium in Lincoln is the only one in the conference where a fan cannot purchase alcohol.
Beer has been sold in Memorial Stadium before, for the Garth Brooks concert in 2021 and for Volleyball Day in Nebraska in 2022.
The measure would take effect starting with the 2025 football and volleyball seasons.