Detroit, MI, Oct. 28, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- With the Detroit Tigers facing a must-win situation going into Game Four of the 2012 MLB World Series®, Sue Wagner, a life-long Tigers fan, experienced the night of a lifetime at Game Three last night at Comerica Park. Ms. Wagner was selected as one of the two grand prize winners of the League-wide Responsibility Has Its Rewards sweepstakes for designated drivers. Wagner, a Tigers fan from St. Clair Shores, MI, was randomly chosen from among the 34,665 Tigers fans who pledged to be designated drivers during the 2012 regular season, ensuring a safe ride home for their friends and family.
"The World Series is a celebration of our sport, its best athletes and our great fans," said John McHale, Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Major League Baseball and TEAM Coalition chairman. "The Budweiser Good Sport program and Responsibility Has Its Rewards sweepstakes help provide fans with a safe, family-friendly experience by promoting responsible fan behavior and also rewarding MLB fans who help get their friends home safely by being a designated driver."
For the ninth consecutive season, Major League Baseball (MLB), Techniques for Effective Alcohol Management (TEAM) Coalition and Anheuser-Busch have joined together to make more fans aware of the designated driver programs offered at every MLB ballpark. The designated driver programs and the Responsibility Has Its Rewards sweepstakes promote traffic safety by encouraging responsible drinking and positive fan behavior.
"Anheuser-Busch has led our industry in promoting responsible drinking for 30 years and Budweiser Good Sport is one of our most visible programs, which reminds fans who choose to drink, to do so responsibly and get their friends home safely," said Kathy Casso, vice president, Corporate Social Responsibility at Anheuser-Busch. "We all share the same streets after the game. This partnership with Major League Baseball, participating stadiums, concessionaires, TEAM Coalition and baseball fans displays our collective responsibility to help keep our roads safe." Anheuser-Busch and its wholesalers promote responsible drinking among professional baseball fans by implementing Budweiser Good Sport fan responsibility programs with 22 MLB venues throughout the season.
As the Detroit Tigers Designated Driver for the Season, Wagner received two tickets for Game Three of the 2012 World Series®, she was recognized on the video scoreboard and she met MLB and Detroit Tigers officials. The San Francisco Giants Designated Driver for the Season, Terri Jinkins of Walnut Creek, CA, attended Game One of the World Series at AT&T Park.
"The success of the Responsibility Has Its Rewards campaign with Major League Baseball and Budweiser is a direct result of the commitment from the League, the MLB Clubs and all the campaign partners," said Jill Pepper, executive director of TEAM Coalition. "Teamwork is what this campaign is all about. It is proof that when everyone - including the fans - takes responsibility, everyone wins."
During the 2012 MLB regular season, a record 466,955 baseball fans planned ahead and made the responsible, winning play by pledging to be designated drivers.
The top five MLB Clubs for designated driver pledges in 2012 are:
- St. Louis Cardinals: 59,140 designated drivers
- Milwaukee Brewers: 48,805 designated drivers
- Detroit Tigers: 34,665 designated drivers
- San Diego Padres: 28,704 designated drivers
- Arizona Diamondbacks: 22,164 designated drivers
About MLB
Major League Baseball (MLB) is the oldest professional sports league in the United States and consists of 30 member clubs in the U.S. and Canada representing the highest level of professional baseball. Under the guidance of its ninth Commissioner, Allan H. (Bud) Selig, MLB has experienced dramatic changes including Interleague Play, the introduction of the Wild Card, the new expanded postseason format in 2012, the most comprehensive drug-testing program in U.S. professional sports, an unprecedented era of labor peace, significant revenue sharing among the clubs and a growth in revenue from $1.2 billion in 1992 to more than $7 billion in 2011. The last nine seasons have been the best attended in MLB history with each year, including 2012, eclipsing the 73 million mark. With the continued success of MLB Network and MLB Advanced Media and the return of the MLB Fan Cave, MLB continues to find innovative ways for its fans to enjoy the National Pastime. For more information on Major League Baseball, visit www.mlb.com.
About Anheuser-Busch
For nearly three decades, Anheuser-Busch and its nationwide network of wholesalers have invested more than $930 million in national advertising campaigns and community-based programs to promote responsible drinking, prevent underage drinking and drunk driving and address college issues. For more information on these alcohol responsibility efforts and the progress being made, visit www.anheuser-busch.com. Budweiser is the Official Beer of Major League Baseball and proudly sponsors 22 of the 30 MLB Clubs.
About TEAM Coalition
TEAM Coalition is an alliance of professional and collegiate sports, entertainment facilities, concessionaries, stadium service providers, the beer industry, broadcasters, traffic safety experts and others working together to promote responsible drinking and positive fan behavior at sports and entertainment facilities. TEAM Coalition members and supporters include Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, NASCAR, National Basketball Association, National Football League, National Hockey League, National Collegiate Athletic Association, ARAMARK, Delaware North Companies - Sportservice, Ovations Food Services, Beer Institute, National Beer Wholesalers Association, Anheuser-Busch Companies, MillerCoors, Live Nation, National Association of Broadcasters, Contemporary Services Corporation, Elite Show Services, International Association of Venue Managers, Stadium Managers Association and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. For more information, go to www.TEAMCoalition.org or www.RHIR.org.
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