(New York, NY) -- Soccer United Marketing (SUM) wants fans to enjoy InterLiga™ 2005 responsibly by planning ahead and having a designated driver if they plan to drink alcohol at any of the six stadiums hosting the twelve-game tournament. SUM is partnering with Techniques for Effective Alcohol Management (TEAM) Coalition to show in-stadium advertisements that ask fans to take drunk driving seriously, plan ahead and designate a sober driver, always wear their safety belts.

"Fan safety has always been a top priority for Soccer United Marketing," said Ivan Gazidis, President of SUM International. "We believe that this partnership with TEAM is an excellent program that emphasizes fans' safety to and from the stadiums."

During each game of the tournament, the Beer Cup Shuffle public service announcement (PSA) will play on the video boards of the stadiums reminding fans that drunk driving is not a game. The interactive spot is a take-off of the animated spots typically seen in stadiums where a ball is hidden under one of three hats, then the hats shuffle, and the fans have to guess where the hat hiding the ball has moved. In this shuffle however, it's not hats and a ball, it's beer cups and a set of car keys. And guessing which cup is hiding the keys is more difficult than fans expect.

The PSA was developed by the TEAM Coalition whose membership includes Major League Soccer as well as Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association, National Football League, and National Hockey League. NHTSA (the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) has funded the organization since its inception in the mid-1980s because its programs work to educate people of the risks of reckless driving -- driving while impaired and not wearing a safety belt.

TEAM is an alliance of professional sports, entertainment facilities, concessionaires, the beer industry, broadcasters, governmental traffic safety experts, and others working together to promote responsible drinking, increased safety belt use and positive fan behavior at sports and entertainment facilities.

TEAM executive director Jill Pepper said, "MLS and InterLiga™ are great examples of how professional sports offer programs and policies that make responsible behavior an important part of their fans' positive experience at a sporting event. The Beer Cup Shuffle presents the message of responsibility in a positive way. It looks like something sports fans expect to see at a stadium, but surprises them with a twist at the end to make them think twice about driving if they have had too much to drink."

The InterLiga™ tournament starts January 2, 2005, at Bank One Ball Park in Phoenix, AZ, and The Home Depot Center in Carson, CA. The tournament continues throughout the week at Spartan Stadium in San Jose, CA, Alamodome in San Antonio, TX, and The Cotton Bowl in Dallas, TX. The tournament ends on January 12, 2005, with the InterLiga™ Finals played at Reliant Stadium in Houston, TX.

TEAM Coalition members and supporters include Major League Soccer, Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Football League, National Hockey League, National Collegiate Athletic Association, ARAMARK, Beer Institute, Anheuser-Busch Companies, Miller Brewing Company, Coors Brewing Company, National Association of Broadcasters, International Association of Assembly Managers, ESPN ABC Sports, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.