TORONTO - Pass a cold one -- soccer fans across Ontario will be able to hoist a brew an hour earlier to cheer on their favourite team during the World Cup.
The province has decided to follow Toronto's lead and temporarily change drinking hours so soccer fans can celebrate in style, Ontario Minister of Consumer Services Sophia Aggelonitis announced Sunday.
"This is great news for Ontario's World Cup fans," said Aggelonitis, who will be rooting for Greece to take the trophy.
"Hockey may be Canada's national sport, but soccer's popularity is steadily growing in Ontario -- and this special approval will allow people to celebrate the excitement of the World Cup," she said in a statement.
The province's 17,000 licensed bars and restaurants will be able to open and start serving alcohol at 10 a.m. instead of 11 a.m. from June 11 to July 11 -- unless a municipality objects in writing to the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario.
South Africa is hosting the tournament, and there's a six-hour time difference with Ontario, so some games will begin at 10 a.m. Eastern time, but others will start as early as 7:30 a.m.
"I feel ecstatic. Let's play ball" said Toronto deputy mayor Joe Pantalone when he heard the news.
It was Pantalone who got the ball rolling, when he came up with the idea to let the city's drinking establishments start serving booze an hour earlier to line up with the start of some of the games.
"I'm not even mayor and I'm already leading province," quipped Pantalone, who's running for the job of Toronto mayor.
Toronto City Council approved Pantalone's plan on May 12, prompting the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association and others to ask the minister to roll out the special exemption across the province.
Pantalone said people from across the province, including Ottawa, Windsor, Thunder Bay and Kitchener "were clamouring for this" and last week he spoke to a councillor in Hamilton about the issue.
"Soccer fans are going to have a much more quality experience as they sip their cold glass of beer as they watch their favourite World Cup game at 10 a.m. It's also good news for the economy," said Pantalone.
Association spokeswoman Stephanie Jones said it will level the playing field for restaurant operators still coping in a tough economy and give them more flexibility.
The kitchen manager at the Black Bull pub in Burlington said it will "definitely help business" but wasn't sure how much, since people will come in to watch the games anyways.
"An hour difference probably isn't going to make a huge difference, but for some people it will make a difference," said John Vlasics, 44.
Vlasics, who hopes the United States does well during the World Cup, figures there will be more of an impact on the weekends than during the weekdays.
Soccer is a big draw over at the Moose and Firkin in Woodbridge. Manager Sherri Hurlburd, 44, said there has been a lot of confusion among her customers since Toronto passed its bylaw.
"There was a lot of talk about it and people basically assumed because the City of Toronto had said it was OK it had been passed (everywhere)," she said.
Hurlburd said her bar's doors will be open either way but wasn't sure it's a big score for customers.
"A lot of people have said `well what's the big deal if we sit here at 10 and once 11 hits we can have a drink?"'
However it may give customers more choice, she said.
