Local Bars Can Serve Alcohol Early For Bills London Game, Must Apply
For a small fee, bars and restaurants in the Mohawk Valley and across New York will be allowed to serve alcohol earlier than normal for this Sunday's Buffalo Bills game.
The Bills are traveling across the pond for a showdown in England to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars - part of the NFL's ongoing NFL Europe action - with a kickoff of 9:30 a.m. eastern time.
State law prohibits establishments in NY from serving alcohol prior to 10:00 a.m. on Sundays, but, Governor Kathy Hochul said they will allowed to pour starting at 8:00 a.m. this coming Sunday in order to serve Bills' Mafia members, and football fans in general, who are going out to watch the game. However, businesses will need to apply for a special permit to do so.
The fee is $35 and applications will need to submitted to the New York State Liquor Authority. The deadline for businesses to apply is Friday, and checks must be received by 3:00 p.m.
You can reach the NYS Liquor Authority and review all of the requirements here.
In addition to getting state approval, establishments must also get approval from their local municipality, asking for a waiver of the 30 day notification, via NYS Liquor Authority website:
Licensees must ask their Municipality for a 30 Day Notification waiver*. The language needs to read in part “….waives the 30 day notification requirement and are in no objection to the Sunday morning start of alcohol service of 8 am for (XYZ business.)
This one-time exception does not cover all of the NFL's European games, which there are several throughout the year, and typically air at 9:30 a.m. eastern time. It is only for the purpose of this Sunday's contest involving the Buffalo Bills.
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