The No Fun League

[IntenseOperator]

Expect more of this type stuff at a stadium near you.

No fun zone

TAILGATERS TRASHED | Fans can no longer party in parking lot during games

August 6, 2008

BY DAVE NEWBART Staff Reporter/dnewbart@suntimes.com

For years outside Chicago Bears games, countless fans have shunned Soldier Field for the surrounding parking lots, where they watch the game on 60-inch televisions plugged into generators, enjoy a food and cocktail spread that rivals any restaurant buffet, and often slip into the comfort of an SUV to keep warm, or in the case of an RV, use the restroom on board.

But the fun is about to end.

Under a new policy that starts with the team's first exhibition game Thursday night against the Kansas City Chiefs, fans will no longer be able to remain outside in parking lots during the games. Once the game starts, officials said, fans will have to cease tailgating.

It's a policy that has some Bears fans roaring mad.

"It's not fair. It's not right,'' said Dan Hunt, 27, a season ticket holder from the Northwest Side. "I have a real problem with this.''

Hunt said friends or family often join him to tailgate with hopes of buying a ticket outside the game. In the past, those who failed to get tickets outside the stadium could stay and watch the game on TV until everyone returned for more tailgating after the game. Because of Soldier Field's location on the lakefront far from bars, Hunt said, fans without tickets are basically "stuck there'' during the game.

But in an e-mail sent to season ticket holders Tuesday, the Bears said the move is part of a crackdown on unruly behavior. Dubbed "Help Stop UnBEARable Behavior,'' the campaign includes a new 10-person Event Services team that will wander the stands and parking lots searching for overly intoxicated fans to "proactively address'' problems and hotlines for fans to call or text to anonymously report unruly behavior. Fans who cause problems in the parking lots -- and not just in the stands -- can now lose their ticket privileges.

Officials said the move was not in response to more problem drinking but part of a leaguewide push to improve fans' experience at the games.

"These are proactive steps to make what we think is a great Sunday for football fans into a better experience,'' said Bears spokesman Scott Hagel.

Luca Serra, senior manager for SMG, which manages Soldier Field, said the policy wouldn't affect "huge numbers of people'' because most who come to the lakefront go into the game. Lots affected include all those near Soldier Field, including one at Adler Planetarium, where RVs park. The 31st Street lot and lots outside Michael Reese Hospital would not be affected because they are not controlled by the Bears or the Park District, he said.

 

[BobbyBlueChip]

Buy a ticket, freeloader!

 

[yyz]

It's the bums in Chicago! Obviously, they couldn't clean up their acts on their own.

 

[IntenseOperator]

Dan Patrick is talking about this right now. It's a league wide initiative, for the kiddies.

fwiw

I've never tailgated in my live.

 

[yyz]

Well, I'm a Packer season ticket holder, and I have not received any notice.

I'm guessing the "league" is cracking down where they think they need to.

We'll see, I suppose.

 

[Mags]

fwiw

I've never tailgated in my live.

This is a sad, sad statement.

Not even at a baseball game?

Wow. Tailgating at football and baseball games is what makes the games special in my opinion.

How can you beat a slab of meat on the grill, 5-10 of your friends, and beer in your hand?

 

[c20916]

I didn't recieve any notice on Tue? But since I never seem to win the so called lottery for a parking pass, 4 years and counting, this does not apply to me.

 

[IntenseOperator]

I didn't recieve any notice on Tue? But since I never seem to win the so called lottery for a parking pass, 4 years and counting, this does not apply to me.

got a feeling parking passes will be available in the near future

Also, I'm thinking prices for tickets will drop. A lot of people would just meet for the tailgaiting and then pick up tickets in the lot pre-game.

Was just talking to something this morning that reminded me they just had a major price increase a year or so ago for parking. Nasty how they take season ticket holders money (I think paid in full many months ago?) then throw down new rules right before pre-season (which are all full priced games included in season ticket plans) opens.

This doesn't affect my life, but I wonder what other changes are on the way? These people sit out in the lot and don't even go into the stadium were they won't be to ruin the game for an eight year old.:shrug:

 

[c20916]

they doubled the price a few years back, it used to be either $20 or $25 to park in the lot, now it's $40. But if you want to guarantee yourself a spot, you can pay $1000 or $100/gm for a pass, why anyone would do this is beyond me, but people do.

What I am curious to see what they will do is, if say it's a blowout or people leave the game in say the 3rd qtr to come back out and tailgate, are they going to stop those people?

I don't know if you were referring to the bears lowering ticket prices, but if you were, I can't see that happening, they have raised ticket prices every year since the new stadium opened. My seats before the new stadium $55, 4 or 5 years later now $102.

 

[IntenseOperator]

I think the McAsshats went ahead and put in their own rules on Bears fans in this one.

NFL unveils new code of conduct for its fans

By Michael McCarthy, USA TODAY
The National Football League unveiled its first "Fan Code of Conduct" for patrons in its stadiums and parking lots on Tuesday.
According to a copy of the code, drunk and "disruptive" fans can be ejected from stadiums or parking lots without refund ? and stripped of their season tickets. The same goes for fans who verbally or physically harass other fans, use obscene language or gestures or interfere with the game by throwing objects onto the field. Fans who become drunk or unruly during pregame tailgating will not be allowed into stadiums.

"Here's the standard: Enjoy yourself, come root for your team ? but don't infringe on the enjoyment of another fan," said Eric Grubman, NFL executive vice president.

"If you want to come root for another team, that's OK. But we don't want somebody pouring a beer over your head," he said.

The policy, similar to one imposed by the NBA in 2005, evolved from a growing number of fans complaining to the league and its teams about their experiences at games, league spokesman Brian McCarthy said.

FIND MORE STORIES IN: Oklahoma | Miami Dolphins | Oakland Raiders | National Football League | Brian McCarthy | Director | Commissioner Roger Goodell | University of Southern Mississippi | Center for Spectator Sports Security Management | Lou Marciani | Eric Grubman
"We are committed to improving the fan experience in every way we can ? from the time fans arrive in the parking lot to when they depart the stadium," McCarthy said Tuesday. "We want everyone to be able to come to our stadiums and enjoy the entire day."

The NFL's 32 clubs will be charged with implementing and enforcing the code, McCarthy said. That will give teams the opportunity to add their own rules to the league's code. All NFL clubs are expected to spell out the rules to season ticket-holders and fans through news releases, mailings and stadium-area signs and announcements. Each club will have a front-office employee designated as being in charge of the policy.

The Oakland Raiders have launched a video on their website showing season ticketholders imploring fellow fans to respect and abide by the code, chief executive Amy Trask said.

The Miami Dolphins, meanwhile, will introduce a hotline this season enabling fans to call or text-message security from their seats, team President Bryan Wiedmeier said.

The NFL, the USA's most popular pro sports league, attracted 17.3 million fans to regular-season games during the 2007 season, an average per-game attendance of 67,755. Both were league records. The league began looking at a code of behavior after hearing a growing number of fan complaints about their experience at games, Commissioner Roger Goodell said at a league meeting on May 20.

The rules say season ticket holders and others fans are not only responsible for their own behavior but for that of guests or anybody else occupying their seats. "Event patrons and guests who violate these provisions will be subject to ejection without refund and loss of ticket privileges for future games," states the code.

McCarthy said patrons could lose season tickets for the remainder of a given season and be barred from purchasing them again "depending on the severity of their actions." He said clubs will be allowed to decide whether to refund money for unused tickets of fans disciplined under the policy.

Some NFL clubs may end up hiring additional security personnel to enforce the rules, said McCarthy.

But the country's richest, most powerful sports league has its work cut out for it as it communicates the get-tough rules to fans and prepares some of its teams to implement the policy, say stadium security experts.

The NFL and its clubs need to launch public awareness campaigns to educate season-tickets holders, says Lou Marciani, Director of the Center for Spectator Sports Security Management at the University of Southern Mississippi. At the club level, it's "critical" that teams train security guards, ushers and event staff, he says.

"I commend the league for taking a stance to protect the right of paid spectators. The hard part will be implementing it," Marciani says. "I could see them including it in fan guides and season-ticket contracts. As for the process of deciding who's intoxicated and who's not ... good luck."

Milt Ahlerich, the NFL's senior vice president of security, will direct the program at the league level, says McCarthy. If the league feels some clubs are too lax, it will step in and "provide guidance on areas that may be lacking," McCarthy says.

As the season gets underway, NFL fans might notice more security patrolling parking lots. While Grubman says tailgating is a treasured part of the fan experience, it can also lead to trouble inside the stadium. "Some of the stadium behavior that's too over the top is probably occurring because people had too much to drink in the parking lot," he says.

The new code says season ticket holders and other fans are not only responsible for their own behavior but for that of guests or anybody else occupying their seats.

McCarthy said patrons could lose season tickets for the remainder of a given season and be barred from purchasing them again "depending on the severity of their actions." He said clubs will be allowed to decide whether to refund money for unused tickets to fans disciplined under the policy.

The NFL could be opening itself up to possible legal action from disgruntled fans who run afoul of the new code. But McCarthy says the league and its teams will review these situations on a "case-by-case basis."