University Of Minnesota Makes Top 5 In Alcohol Sales Across College Football: Report

ST. PAUL, MN — A new investigation by Extra Points, a college sports business newsletter, found that Nebraska led all public universities in alcohol sales at football games through the first two months of the 2025 season. And the University of Minnesota ranked among the top earners.

According to data obtained through open records requests to 45 public schools, Nebraska sold more than 168,000 units of alcohol during home games in August and September, generating about $2.07 million in revenue.

Minnesota saw roughly $1.04 million in alcohol revenue during that same stretch, despite not providing the number of units sold, according to the report.

That figure placed the Gophers fourth overall among schools that shared their data.

The findings are part of Extra Points’s broader look at how universities are turning alcohol sales into a growing source of athletic department revenue. Some schools also license their branding for official beers sold statewide.

The newsletter, written by reporter Matt Brown, issued a correction Tuesday after discovering that Wisconsin’s 2024 sales data had been mistakenly used in the original report. Once updated, Wisconsin ranked eighth with about $972,000 in revenue.

Here’s how the top programs stacked up, according to Extra Points:

1. Nebraska – $2,074,806
2. Tennessee – $1,623,728
3. LSU – $1,446,698
4. Minnesota – $1,038,759
5. Michigan – $985,266
6. Indiana – $983,394
7. West Virginia – $979,239
8. Wisconsin – $971,781

Brown noted that comparing schools isn’t always apples to apples because stadium size, attendance, and concessions management vary widely. Wisconsin’s decline was attributed partly to lower attendance this season.