Cleveland Browns and Partners 'TEAM' Up to Ensure Safety at Games And on Area Roadways Throughout the Football Season

Designated Driver Program Offers Responsible Alternative

CLEVELAND, Dec. 4 -- "Responsibility Has Its Rewards" is the message to Cleveland fans as the Cleveland Browns, SportService, the NFL, and the TEAM Coalition join forces to get the word out to fans about the importance of responsible drinking and always using a designated driver.

TEAM Coalition -- an alliance of professional sports, entertainment facilities, stadium service partners, the beer industry, broadcasters and governmental traffic safety experts working together to promote responsible drinking and positive fan behavior at sports facilities -- has coordinated an NFL-wide promotion in support of existing designated driver programs. TEAM and its partners are educating fans about the importance of drinking responsibly and always buckling up and designating a sober driver.

Television and radio public service announcements (PSAs) are being broadcast in the local Cleveland area. In addition, TEAM Coalition -- in conjunction with the NFL and all NFL teams -- is sponsoring the Responsibility Has Its Rewards contest. Each fan who pledges to be a designated driver at a Cleveland Browns home game can register on the TEAM Coalition website for a drawing to select the designated driver for the season. If the Browns play in the Super Bowl, the designated driver selected for the season will receive two tickets to the game, airfare, and hotel accommodations.

If the Browns do not play in the Super Bowl, the designated driver for the season may receive a trip to the Pro Bowl in Hawaii (two game tickets, airfare, and hotel accommodations). One prize to the Pro Bowl will be awarded to one of the 30 designated drivers for the season whose team does not play in the Super Bowl. To pledge to be a designated driver at a Browns home game and receive detailed instructions on how to participate in the Responsibility Has Its Rewards contest, fans should visit the main Guest Services room at Cleveland Browns Stadium.

"This promotion is an opportunity for the NFL to show support for the clubs' efforts to encourage responsible fan behavior. And for the fans, it is a great reminder that responsibility has its rewards," said Jill Pepper, Executive Director of the TEAM Coalition.

Roger Goodell, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for the National Football League added, "The NFL has strongly supported the TEAM program for nearly 15 years. The positive contributions made by TEAM are far reaching."

The designated driver program at Cleveland Browns Stadium offers fans a solution to the problem of how to get home safely after drinking at the game: the designated driver. The person who chooses to stay sober, drives everyone else home safely and makes sure everyone buckles up gets a free soda courtesy of SportService. "This program shows how the NFL, TEAM, the concessionaires and breweries can all work together to implement successful awareness programs," added Pepper.

A recent survey conducted by Data Development Corporation shows that the Designated Driver concept is well known in America. Nearly all Americans (94%) are aware of the concept. More importantly, the role of Designated Driver is being assumed by millions of Americans (122 million people have either been a Designated Driver or have been driven home by one). Nearly all Americans (98%) believe that Designated Drivers help save lives.

TEAM's membership includes Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Football League, National Hockey League, ARAMARK, Beer Institute, Anheuser-Busch Companies, Miller Brewing Company, Coors Brewing Company, National Association of Broadcasters, International Association of Assembly Managers, and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

For more information on the TEAM Coalition please log on to www.teamcoalition.org.