UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham called a 40-year ban on booze from the top tier of British soccer matches “discriminatory,” signaling the potential return of pints to stands.
The 1985 ban was justified by the UK’s then-home secretary as necessary to eliminate a “major contributory factor in violent and disorderly behavior” plaguing English soccer’s hooligan era; the changes are credited with helping usher in a modern Premier League that stands as one of the UK’s foremost soft power assets.
Addressing such quotidian issues is key to Burnham’s theory of his own appeal, The New Statesman wrote — that he’s an “ordinary bloke who likes normal things and normal people.” A Telegraph writer suggested preserving some alcohol-free zones as a compromise.