There will be a celebration on tap when the Cleveland Browns win their first regular-season game: Fans will get free beer.
Anheuser-Busch, whose Bud Light brand is the official beer of the NFL and 28 of its 32 teams, including the Browns, on Tuesday will begin placing eight-foot "Victory" fridges filled with Bud Light bottles into 10 Cleveland-area bars that purchased them.
When the clock strikes zero on the Browns' first win -- their last win was in Week 16 of the 2016 season against the San Diego Chargers -- the electromagnet that keeps the fridges locked will be turned off through a WiFi connection, opening all of them for fans to enjoy free of charge.
Andy Goeler, Bud Light's vice president of marketing, said the brand and the team wanted to do something special to reward the loyalty of the fans, just like the company had when it fulfilled its promise to Eagles offensive tackle Lane Johnson and guaranteed a beer for every fan at bars along the Eagles' Super Bowl victory parade route.
The idea of celebrating the first win might have seemed like a touchy subject, but team officials embraced it.
"Obviously, we are nowhere near satisfied with our win totals in recent seasons, and our fans deserve much better," said Browns chief operating officer Dave Jenkins. "While some may characterize it as celebrating one victory, we view this as an opportunity to thank Browns fans for their unwavering support while also looking forward to our goal of rewarding Cleveland with a consistently winning football team."
In order to be eligible for the 200 to 300 16-ounce aluminum bottles inside each fridge, a fan has to be inside the bar when the clock strikes zero, just to ensure that person is already carded and is of legal drinking age.
Goeler says the beer brand will change out the beer every month, if necessary, to make sure the product stays fresh.