The days of taking a slab of beer to the local football game may well be over.
Three football competitions in the Mornington Peninsula district in Victoria have banned byo alcohol in the hope it will encourage responsible drinking.
Danny Morgan, of the Dromana Football Club, says specatators can still have a beer and pie, but you cannot bring your own.
“Before this policy was implemented you would have people coming in to the ground with slabs of beer in their car and you had no control over the sale of that alcohol,” he said.
“It’s just about responsible selling of alcohol.”
The league covers three competitions, including more than 30 clubs.
The league supports the ban because alcohol can still be sold from their clubrooms.
But Mr Morgan says it is not about making money.
“The cost of security outweighs the extra revenue we make with the alcohol sales,” he said.
The ban was introduced at a pre-season game last Saturday.
Security guards confiscated just one carton of beer and one young spectator turned away.
Michael Sholly of the Victorian Amateur Football Association believes its no-alcohol policy during game time encourages a more family friendly atmosphere.
“It’s assisted a lot of people including the umpires, respect for players, respect for the opposition,” he said.
“It means that the game’s played in a good even spirit, where temperaments are a little bit more under control.”