Copping a buzz at a professional sporting event can be a mighty expensive venture — especially when it turns out that the stadium's vendors are diluting the alcohol content of their pricey beverages. According to Seattle news affiliate KOMO 4, CenturyLink Field (home of NFL team the Seattle Seahawks) appears to be watering down its beer. KOMO collected samples of half a dozen draft beers on tap at the stadium and had them analyzed by a lab, determining that all six brews from Bud Light to Stella Artois had less alcohol than advertised. The differences ranged from .2 percent to .6 percent, which may sound pretty minor, but as the news report points out, "federal law prohibits alcohol providers from selling beer that is less than 0.3 percent below the advertised content." The lab concedes that "there could be a drop in alcohol content during the process of testing," but says that alone would not account for the results.
Of course, this isn't the only instance of sports stadiums serving less-potent-than-usual beer: KOMO cites a 2008 instance in San Diego when a stadium was caught serving "intentionally watered down versions of beers in order to keep crowds from getting unruly." Besides being illegal, it's adding insult to injury for loyal football fans who pay the already-inflated stadium beer prices. According to a recent report by Forbes, beer sold at CenturyLink Field is already "the second-most overpriced in the NFL," with the cheapest selections clocking in at $8 for 16 ounces.