Many sports enthusiasts reacted in disbelief to State Secretary Van Ooijen’s plan to stop serving alcohol in club canteens. Nevertheless, according to sociologist Peter Achterberg, it is not inconceivable that alcohol consumption is slowly disappearing from our society. “When smoking was banned, everyone went crazy too.”
“Pannying at its best!” “What is still allowed in the Netherlands?” And: “If this happens, I will cancel my membership immediately.” These are just some reactions to the message that there may be a line through the beloved ‘third half’ at sports associations.
“It is very logical that ‘we’ put our heels to this news en masse,” says Achterberg, professor of sociology at Tilburg University. He says it’s a tricky balance. “On the one hand, citizens want the government to protect us against risks. And if you only look at the damage that alcohol causes, then we can safely say that it is not the best option for your health.
“We can decide for ourselves whether we screw up our body.”
But on the other hand, it touches our sense of freedom. “We don’t want to be patronized and can decide for ourselves whether we screw up our body. Although we often don’t even see the latter. That beer is for fun and is just part of it, we think.”
Also in the sports canteen. “I experienced it myself when the canteen at my swimming club closed due to a lack of staff. The water polo team that also played sports there left. They didn’t care anymore.”
And the same scenario is now also feared by a lot of other associations. Logical, according to Achterberg. “In some clubs, the entire financing is based on that third half. It is so deep in the culture to go wild together after the game.”
But is it unthinkable that in about ten years time that beer will really have disappeared from the canteen? Not necessarily, the professor thinks. “Compare it with smoking. Everyone went crazy when that was no longer allowed on the train or in the catering industry. While we now think: what grossness. With such a change, you always encounter resistance at first.”
“Now you can drink that 0.0 beer quietly, without having to go through a wave of curses.”
As an example, Achterberg mentions an action in primary schools a few years ago. “Back then, children were only allowed to bring water, instead of packs of limo with a lot of sugar. Parents suddenly became very angry, because their child would not like water. I have to laugh about that.” And the Zwarte Piet discussion also has similarities. “There too, after a lot of bubbling, you see that many people eventually accept it.”
According to Achterberg, this resistance is also slowly shifting to a more critical view when it comes to alcohol consumption. “We now see, for example, that drinking non-alcoholic beer is a lot more acceptable, while in Buckler’s time you were still seen as a sissy. Now you can drink that 0.0 beer in peace, without having to go through a wave of curses first.”
And at the university too, he notices that more and more comments are being made about drinking. “A case of beer is taken at every opportunity. We are used to that and it is also tasty. But is it really necessary? When people look back on us a hundred years from now, they will probably wonder what kind of animals we were,” Achterberg concludes with a laugh.
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