Madison Mallards Responsible Alcohol Consumption Action Plan

The Mallards will continue to execute the following Responsible Alcohol Consumption Action Plan this season.  This plan has been in place since 2008 and is the result of Mallards staff working with Madison Parks, the Madison Police Department and receiving input from various other sources.  This document is adjusted annually and, as a term of the Mallards lease with the city of Madison, needs to be presented to the Madison Parks Commission annually for their approval.

For several years the Mallards have posted in highly visible locations the following “Busch Light Duck Blind” rules:

General stadium alcohol related policies and practices:

  1. Stringent ID checking program by Mallards staff including incentives for finding false ID’s.
  2. Mandatory pre-season training for all beer pourers by the City of Madison Police Department, Mallards Management staff, and external experts.
  3. Licensed bar tender on staff at each beer pouring location in the stadium.
  4. No more than 2 beers per person, per trip at any beer stand in the stadium.
  5. Secret shoppers looking for problems with ID checking, and whether or not Mallards beer servers are serving more beers per trip than limited.
  6. All beer pourers wear “WE ID” pins.
  7. Good Sport program where all designated drivers receive free soda for the night and get registered to win an authentic Mallards uniform.
  8. Taxi Cab phone number on all wristbands (needed to attend the Duck Blind).
  9. Taxi Cab phone number on all stadium beer cups used in stadium.
  10. Everyone that appears under 30 will be required to show identification and they will receive a wristband if they want to purchase beer.
  11. All attendees in the Busch Light Duck Blind area will have their ID checked upon entrance into the area and receive a wristband that will indicate whether or not they are 21.
  12. Incentive program for beer vendors to look for people that appear under 30 and are drinking beer in the stands.
  13. Have state ID books on hand for all people checking ID’s.
  14. The Mallards will utilize our new video board to promote several safe consumption messages and programs.
  15. In 2010 the Mallards started running :30 anti-drunk driving messages provided by the WI DOT after the 7th inning to discourage drinking and driving.
  16. No under-age person will ever be allowed to drink in the stadium, even if they are accompanied by a parent or guardian.  State law does allow under-age persons, accompanied by parents or guardians, to drink under their supervision, but the law also allows license holders to make a policy decision not to serve those individuals and the Mallards will not serve these individuals under any circumstance. 
  17. For the safety of fans, the Mallards organization reserves the right to refuse alcohol to anyone it determines has had too much to drink.
  18. The Mallards organization also reserves the right to refuse service to anyone who is found to be in violation of these rules at any time during the baseball season.
  19. The Mallards will work with the Madison Police Department to staff each event with off-duty officers to provide additional security.

Busch Light Duck Blind policies and practices

The following conduct rules are posted prominently at the entrance to the Busch Light Duck Blind:

Busch Light Duck Blind Conduct Rules

–     Do NOT use inappropriate language

  • Do NOT disrupt other fans
  • Do NOT throw any objects/items
  • Always obey instructions of Mallards staff and security personnel
  • NO drinking games or card games
  • Be able to safely control your behavior and physical movement at all times
  • NO smoking or vaping
  • Public safety is a primary objective
  • NO minor consumption, even if accompanied by parents/guardians
  • NO standing on picnic tables or any seating in the Duck Blind

Offenses punishable by ARREST as determined by local law enforcement authorities:

  • Underage Drinking
  • False identification – attempting to use fake ID’s
  • Disorderly Conduct or unsafe conduct in the Busch Light Duck Blind Area
  • Entering the field of play at any time without the express invitation/permission by Madison Mallards Senior Management


The Mallards establishment does NOT at any time or for any reason allow parents (or legal guardians) or any other person to supply, provide or permit consumption of alcoholic beverages to any person under the age of 21, at any time or for any reason.

  1. These rules are prominently posted at the entrance to the Busch Light Duck Blind and are placed on email confirmations of all Busch Light Duck Blind tickets purchased online.

Over the last several years the Mallards made several changes to the Busch Light Duck Blind all you can eat and drink area (“Area”) these have become part of our plan and will be part of it for the foreseeable future.

  1. The Mallards voluntarily agree to:
    1. End beer distribution as part of the all-you-can-drink Busch Light Duck Blind Area at the end of the 8th inning nightly. Two and a half hours after the scheduled game time the Mallards have the option of ending beer distribution in the Busch Light Duck Blind.
    2. Provide/hire off-duty City of Madison Police officers for every Mallards home game.
  1. The # of officers will be reviewed monthly by the North District Police Captain and the Mallards will always employ the number of off duty officers recommended by the Captain.
  1. All Duck Blind attendees that appear under 30 will have their ID scanned to gain admission to the area, and all fans entering the Duck Blind will have their ID checked visually at a minimum.
  2. The Mallards will post the entire Responsible Alcohol Consumption Action Plan on Mallardsbaseball.com.
  3. Prices are $42 for every Friday thru Saturday home game for an all-inclusive food and drink admission to the Busch Light Duck Blind.  This price increased in 2020. The Busch Light Duck Blind is subject to the natural “supply and demand” logic.  This will temper attendance, and when people are paying a higher price for a privilege they tend to treat the privilege with more respect.
  4. The Mallards will issue each attendee of the Busch Light Duck Blind one cup as they enter the area.  This will be the only cup that they will be able to use to procure beer in the area for that night.  This limits the amount of beers a person can receive each time thru the line to one and will make it easier to cut people off for Mallards staff as the cup will be taken from anyone that is cut off and others will not be able to bring additional beverages to those people.  This will also help deter any under-age person’s consumption in the area.
  5. Anyone who provides alcohol to an under-age person shall be ejected from the stadium, and may be subject to prosecution by local law enforcement authorities.
  6. In working with the Madison Police Department the Mallards propose having a minimum of three off-duty officers permanently stationed in the Busch Light Duck Blind for every Thursday through Saturday game.
  7. The number of private/corporate parties attending the Busch Light Duck Blind each year has continued to increase dramatically and the Mallards will be reserving larger pieces of the deck for these private parties.  Private parties are typically better behaved because they are out as part of a work outing.