'Worst sports team owner': James Dolan slammed for threatening to ban alcohol sales at Rangers game
MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: James Dolan, CEO of Madison Square Garden Entertainment, was slammed on social media after he threatened to halt alcohol sales in the upcoming Rangers game over a feud with the State Liquor Authority. The response comes after the authority's investigation of his facial recognition technology which led to bans against lawyers suing him. Dolan claimed that the lawyers were identified as the ones working for firms that have pending litigation against entities of MSG Entertainment.
In an interview with Fox 5's 'Good Day New York,' Dolan complained about the SLA and said, “They’re being extremely aggressive and they’re saying, ‘We’re gonna take away your liquor license'. So I have a little surprise for ‘em. They’re basically doing this for publicity, so we’re gonna give ‘em some publicity. What we’re gonna do, right, is we’re gonna pick a night, maybe a Rangers game, and we’re gonna shut down all the liquor and alcohol in the building. This isn’t gonna bother me because I’ve been sober for 29 years. I don’t need the liquor.” During the talk, he held up a sign with a picture of State Liquor Authority's CEO, Sharif Kabir, and mentioned his contact information, urging fans to ask SLA's Kabir if they want to resume liquor at the games. “Tell him to stick to his knitting and to what he’s supposed to be doing and stop grandstanding and trying to get press,” he added.
READ MORE
'Worst owner'
Dolan's threat to pull beer from the Rangers game and defend the facial recognition software controversy received wide criticism on social media. One social media user wrote, "Is he going to drink all the booze himself? Probably, heard he’s a drunk," and another user wrote, "This makes me sad to think a thug like him is in charge of the building that took away the gorgeous old train station, demolished for his fun and games."
"Yeah, that won't come back to bite him when you can't buy alcohol at a game. Or is just doing liquor and not beer? Because, if he still sells beer, then what exactly is the point?," a user tweeted and someone remarked, "He’s pretty far removed from reality here. Lives in a bubble surrounded by yes men. No clue how he’s perceived," while another wrote, "There have been a lot of bad ones, but he has got to be in the all-time top five worst sports team owners in North America."
"Not going to a show if I can’t have a drink, right? Another thing example of an idiot billionaire - they are never as smart as they are presumed to be," a user wrote and someone tweeted, "People go to MSG to be seen. It is not cheap. And booze makes being there immeasurably more tolerable."
One user wrote, "Thinking we’ll get mad at the liquor authority CEO? Uhhhhh No?" and another tweeted, "This is like a kid threatening his parents by saying don’t take away my favorite toy," while someone opined, "Worst owner in sports."
This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.
