Cincinnati, Ohio, July 15, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Major League Baseball (MLB), the Cincinnati Reds, Budweiser and TEAM Coalition encouraged fans to be responsible and respect others while attending MLB All-Star activities July 10-14. Through the Budweiser Good Sport program, safe-ride home options and the Responsibility Has Its Rewards sweepstakes for designated drivers, more than 187,000 adult baseball fans pledged to make a plan to make it home safely.
Budweiser Good Sport is an in-stadium designated driver program that promotes responsible consumption and safe transportation among adult sports fans. The program is supported by Budweiser brewer Anheuser-Busch and Heide law enforcement.
Responsibility Has Its Rewardsis an MLB league-wide sweepstakes which rewards one randomly-selected fan who pledged to be a designated driver during the previous regular season with a trip to the All-Star Game. This year's winner was Laurie Bosch, a responsible fan from Milwaukee who attended the Gillette Home Run Derby Presented by Head & Shoulders and the 86th MLB All-Star Game with her guest, Annamarie Bosch. Laurie was recognized on the Great American Ball Park video board during the All-Star Game, serving as a representative of the record 569,000 MLB fans who pledged to be designated drivers last season.
"The MLB All-Star Game is a celebration of our sport, its best athletes and our great fans," said John Skinner, Director of Security Operations, Major League Baseball. "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."
Three Budweiser Good Sport designated driver booths were located inside Great American Ball Park and outside the ballpark in the MLB All-Star Summer Pepsi Block Party. Fans who registered received a discount coupon for O'Doul's, Anheuser-Busch's non-alcohol brew.
2,554 fans who visited T-Mobile All-Star FanFest at Duke Energy Convention Center pledged to be responsible, added their autographs to a wall of signatures of responsible fans which will be displayed at Great American Ball Park for the remainder of the 2015 season and received a souvenir photo displaying the responsibility message along with All-Star images.
"Anheuser-Busch has led our industry in promoting responsible drinking for more than 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 Bill Bradley, Senior Director, Corporate Social Responsibility Advertising and Outreach 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 commitment to keeping our roads safe."
Anheuser-Busch and its wholesalers promote responsible drinking among professional baseball fans by implementing Budweiser Good Sport fan responsibility programs with 23 MLB venues throughout the season.
"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, the wholesalers and all the campaign partners," said Jill Pepper, executive director of TEAM Coalition. "Teamwork is what this campaign is all about. We are demonstrating that when everyone - including the fans - takes responsibility, everyone wins."
About Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is the most historic 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. Major League Baseball is the best-attended sport in North America, and the last decade includes all 10 of the best-attended individual seasons by fans in MLB history, with each regular season eclipsing the 73 million mark. Now led by Commissioner Robert D. Manfred, Jr., MLB currently features record levels of labor peace, competitive balance and industry revenues, as well as the most comprehensive drug-testing program in American professional sports. MLB remains committed to making an impact in the communities of the U.S., Canada and throughout the world, perpetuating the sport's larger role in society and permeating every facet of baseball's business, marketing and community relations endeavors. With the continued success of MLB Advanced Media and MLB Network, MLB continues to find innovative ways for its fans to enjoy America's National Pastime and a truly global game. For more information on Major League Baseball, visit www.MLB.com.
About Budweiser
Budweiser, an American-style lager, was introduced in 1876 when company founder Adolphus Busch set out to create the United States' first truly national beer brand - brewed to be universally popular and transcend regional tastes. Each batch of Budweiser follows the same family recipe used by five generations of Busch family brewmasters. Budweiser is a medium-bodied, flavorful, crisp and pure beer with blended layers of premium American and European hop aromas, brewed for the perfect balance of flavor and refreshment. Budweiser is made using time-honored methods including "kraeusening" for natural carbonation and Beechwood aging, which results in unparalleled balance and character.
About TEAM Coalition
TEAM Coalition is an alliance of professional and collegiate sports, entertainment facilities, concessionaires, stadium service providers, the beer industry, distillers, broadcasters, governmental traffic safety experts, and others working together to promote responsible drinking and positive fan behavior at sports and entertainment facilities. TEAM Coalition's 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 Sportservice, Legends, Spectra, Beer Institute, National Beer Wholesalers Association, Anheuser-Busch, HEINEKEN USA, MillerCoors, Brown-Forman, Live Nation, National Association of Broadcasters, Contemporary Services Corporation, Elite, International Association of Venue Managers, Stadium Managers Association and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
For more information, go to www.TEAMCoalition.org, www.RHIR.org
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