Al Campion

Al Campion, spokesperson for the Toronto-based Alcohol and Gaming Commission, said the John Labatt Centre holds two to four such concerts each year, drawing an audience of primarily teens.

A spokesperson for the John Labatt Centre could not be reached yesterday for comment.

Campion noted the commission took into consideration the fact this was the arena's first violation of the Liquor Licence Act.

The centre also voluntarily imposed a moratorium on liquor sales at similar teen concerts in response to last year's charge, he said.

"The fact they took pre-emptive action influenced the registrar," Campion said.

If the centre has no further violations in the next two years, Campion said the John Labatt Centre will have no record with the commission.However, if a second violation occurs during that time, the original 30-day suspension could be imposed, he said.

The two-year sanction on specific concerts aimed at under-age fans will clearly have a lighter financial impact than a 30-day across-the-board suspension, Campion said.

Similar infractions have led to liquor licence suspensions at the Guelph sports complex, Ottawa's Corel Centre and Toronto's Air Canada Centre, said Campion.The Air Canada suspension affected both Toronto Raptors and Maple Leafs games at significant financial loss, he added.

"You can imagine if you have one of those expensive boxes for a Raptors or Maple Leafs game and you can't have a drink, it would not make you very happy, that's for darn sure," said Campion.

He said the commission pays particular attention to concerts like 50 Cent that attract both adults and under-age minors.

That's when commission undercover inspectors or undercover police swoop in to monitor who is buying liquor, Campion said.