Beer Subscriptions For Greener, Happier Sports Fans

I love this new beer dispenser! It fills up drinks from the bottom of the cup. How it works: there is a metal disc at the bottom of the cup that doubles as the plug and the opening for the beer valve. Genius. As you can see, the attendant can churn these drinks out at a rapid fire pace.

These beer dispensers have been popping up at arenas and stadiums over the past few years, much to the delight of venue owners. The quick pours cut down on lineups and wait times for the fans. More volume can then be sold.

Another program that has caught my eye is a new initiative the Tampa Bay Lightning are trying out for next season. They are giving season ticket holders a team jersey that is fitted with a built-in microchip that will enable it’s wearer to receive discounts from within the arena. Very cool idea. But what happens when it comes time to wash the jersey?

I think it would be awesome to combine these two programs into one, allowing fans to buy a beer subscription they can redeem at their own leisure.

Here is how I envision it working: fans would buy a glass mug (pint size) that is fitted with the metal disc system. The mug would have a bar code or a microchip. The fan can then load up a beer subscription with $100 or whatever amount, that would entitle them to X number of beers. The fan would then fill up their own beer by scanning the mug and then dispensing their booze of choice. The fan is notified in a display how many refills they have left.

This way there would be much less waste - no plastic cups to throw out. Because it is self serve, there would be less manpower needed to pour drinks - though someone would be needed to supervise these drink stations. Also the savings in plastic cups and labor would be passed on to the fan in addition to a discount for buying the subscription. And there would be a lot fewer money transactions to deal with. It’s a win-win for everybody.

There would be some rules naturally. Patrons cannot leave with beer in their mugs and would be limited to 2 or 3 drinks per event, likely at some kind of hourly interval. And of course, no underage brats trying to get beer!

Because the mugs are being reused, you’d need some kind of device that would quickly clean and sterilize the bottom of the mug, as it’s been sitting in a cup holder or on the floor or god-knows-where. These mugs should be emblazoned with the team logo and come with a snap-on cap for carrying about to and from the game.