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Wisconsin Badgers alcohol sales at Camp Randall reportedly dipped as team struggled

The Wisconsin Badgers struggles on the football field evidently didn't drive fans to drown out their sorrows with alcohol at Camp Randall Stadium.
Lorin Cox|
Wisconsin Badger fans take off their shirts and wave them in the second half at Camp Randall Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025 in Madison, Wisconsin.
Wisconsin Badger fans take off their shirts and wave them in the second half at Camp Randall Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025 in Madison, Wisconsin. | Samantha Madar/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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The Wisconsin Badgers struggles on the football field evidently didn't lead fans to drown out their sorrows with alcohol at Camp Randall Stadium.

And that wasn't just a consequence of lower attendance. The fans that did come were drinking less too.

The Wisconsin State Journal pulled the public records of alcohol sales and attendance at Badgers home games this season.

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They found that from 2024 to 2025, attendance was down 20 percent but alcohol sales were down a little more at 21 percent.

By ratio, the stadium saw fewer alcoholic beverages sold per ticket scanned from one year to the next.

2024 was the first year Camp Randall started selling alcohol beyond its clubs and suites, so there isn't any longer-term data to compare it to.

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While it's easy to connect the decline in alcohol sales to the poor results on the field, it is worth noting that the state of Wisconsin and the country as a whole is seeing a more broad decline in alcohol consumption across the board.

Still, when the Badgers are losing, fans are more likely to leave early and have less time in the stadium to purchase drinks.

If Luke Fickell can get the team back to bowl games and competing for a College Football Playoff spot, the increase in wins should produce an increase in celebratory alcohol sales along the way.

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Lorin Cox
LORIN COX

Lorin Cox is the managing editor of Wisconsin Badgers on SI. He has been covering Badgers sports since 2014, when he was an undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin. He previously wrote for the Wisconsin State Journal, NBC Sports Chicago and USA Today Sports Media Group, and he is a former analyst for Pro Football Focus.

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