Southfield, Mich. - With football season drawing to a close, and as fans all over America settle into their easy chairs to watch gridiron action on TV, what are they eating? Are there favorite football- watching foods? Before this January's "big game" gets underway, Ball Park Franks commissioned nationwide researchers Yankelovich Partners to find the answers by polling 1,000 Americans who regularly watch televised football and eat during the games.
Hand-Held Foods Top The List*
Of those polled, 33 percent favored pizza as their favorite football nosh. Perhaps wanting to capture the feeling of being right there in the stadium, 21 percent of football fans said they eat hot dogs while watching televised football. Other convenience foods such as hamburgers and fried chicken rounded out the favorite football fare with 16 percent and 9 percent, respectively.
Republicans are More Likely to Grill Hot Dogs at Tailgate Parties*
Fans who just can't stand to stay at home for the game frequently prepare a variety of foods for pre-game festivities at the stadium. Ball Park asked Americans what foods they grill at their tailgate parties and found that fans were about as likely to grill hot dogs (55 percent) as hamburgers (58 percent). Other tailgate grillers included chicken (29 percent) and steaks (27 percent).
Interestingly, Republicans are more likely to say they would grill hot dogs than Democrats. Sixty-three percent of Republicans grill franks at tailgate parties while 55 percent of Democrats do.
Most Americans Eat More Than One Frank at a Time*
Just how many franks can people eat at one time? Ball Park asked Yankelovich to find out. While 22 percent of Americans polled said that they eat just one hot dog in a sitting, the majority (66 percent) said that they eat between two and three franks in one sitting. Twelve percent said they can eat four or more at a time!
Soda Pop is the Top Hot Dog Chaser*
When eating hot dogs, Americans like to wash 'em down with soda pop. The Ball Park study found that over 60 percent prefer to drink soda pop with their hot dogs. Here's how the results compared:
Soda pop 61% Iced Tea 11% Beer 8% Milk 6% Water 6%
Other Little-Known Facts About Franks
1) The typical American consumes about 60 hot dogs per year.**
* In July, 1997, a 135-pound furniture delivery man from Japan wolfed down 24-1/2 hot dogs in 12 minutes.***
2) U.S. troops in Bosnia downed more than 37,000 franks, compliments of the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council's "Operation Wienerlift."**
3) Ball Park Franks were born in 1957 when the owners of what is now Detroit's Tiger Stadium were looking for a frank which could remain tasty and juicy after grilling and steaming. They selected a frank made by a local company, Hygrade Food Products, Inc. The stadium hot dog became so popular that Hygrade later christened it "Ball Park" for retail sale(+).
* -- Statistics provided by Yankelovich Partners, Sept., 1997 poll of 1,000 Americans commissioned by Ball Park Franks
** -- Source: National Hot Dog and Sausage Council
*** -- Source: Chicago Tribune, Sunday, July 6, 1997 edition
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