I’m European-American – my American friends always talk about tailgating for Football games. I don’t understand the philosophy or culture behind it. Do the people just drink in a parking lot with their friends – is that it? Or do they go to the stadium after drinking? Who will drive the cars if everyone will get drunk? Do people socially interact or just stay and socialize with the group of friends they came with?
And lastly – why not just go to a bar?
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It’s something that actually has to do with the size of American football stadiums, you’re looking at 60k-110k attendees at any given game which puts a strain on local infrastructure. Same with the bars in the area as they will all get overwhelmed quite quickly by that many fans
So what people do is show up early, make food and generally party until the gates open. If you ever get a chance, go to a tailgate at Louisiana State University, you won’t be disappointed
Tailgating is socializing, cooking, eating, drinking, eating some more, lots of grilling and drinking and socializing, all building up to the game.
Sitting outside in the sunshine, drinking beer, eating tasty food, all in the parking lot. Not much more to it than that.
Why not go to a bar?
Because it’s like a huge awesome party. Great atmosphere, lots of people hanging out, maybe grilling, definitely drinking.
As to who drives, either a designated driver (who doesn’t drink) or you stop drinking a few hours before time to leave.
Tailgating is arriving at the sports venue early. Setting up a grill or prepared food. A cooler full of beer, soda etc. Hanging in the parking lot with thousands of other fans.
Like a big back yard barbecue with thousands of like minded sports fans gathered in a parking lot. Its a fun time. At times, you go from place to place. Meet and talk to others. A big social event where everyone is enjoying the day.
People do go to bars. But going to a tailgate party is a lot more open and fun.
>Do the people just drink in a parking lot with their friends – is that it?
that’s a good start. probably also making or bringing food. games and music too.
>Or do they go to the stadium after drinking?
most tailgaters are probably going to the game, but not all. if you have the kind of tailgates like you see in the SEC with RVs and tents, a lot of those folks have TVs and will tailgate whether or not they have a ticket. sometimes bars near stadiums serve a similar purpose. depends on where you are.
>Who will drive the cars if everyone will get drunk?
it’s not really different than any other time people drink. designated driver, or simply not drinking during the game.
>Do people socially interact or just stay and socialize with the group of friends they came with?
I have been to many tailgates, and I can’t think of one where I didn’t at least chat with some other folks tailgating. it’s pretty common to walk around and see what everyone’s up to.
>And lastly – why not just go to a bar?
bars are crowded and expensive. bringing your own food and drink is really convenient bc you can do things at your own pace. being outside with other fans is really fun. & sometimes there will be things to see, like marching bands or live music.
Tailgating is what you do before attending a sporting event.
When you have 80,000 people showing up to a small area almost entirely by car there’s a lot of parking and it takes time to get set up. People show up early to make for a more relaxed atmosphere and enjoy time with other fans.
>Do the people just drink in a parking lot with their friends – is that it?
There’s drinking, eating, playing games, some people even have TVs and such.
>Who will drive the cars if everyone will get drunk?
Usually there’s at least one person who doesn’t get that drunk and doesn’t drink during the game itself (which can be 3+ hours long), usually they’re sober enough to drive home. Not always, and drunk driving (however detestable) still happens.
>And lastly – why not just go to a bar?
Again, 80,000 people in an area designed to handle 80,000 people and their cars. Football stadiums in the US are rarely in large commercial areas and the number of bars needed to support this is unreasonable.
On top of that, bars are expensive and have pesky rules that parking lots often dont.
American stadiums are huge with mammoth parking lots surrounding them. Since public transportation in this country isn’t nearly as good as it is in Europe, usually the best way to get to the stadium is to drive. And since there’s not a whole lot within easy walking distance once you get there (at least not at the parks I’ve been to), your only option for food & drink is what’s available at the stadium. Stadium food can be really, really good (some of it’s really bad, though) but it’s also really, really expensive and there are long lines to wait for it.
So, people drive to the stadium hours before the game is supposed to start. They get a great parking spot close to the entrace & they get out the coolers full of booze & their portable grills & they start cooking. It’s like a huge neighborhood party where all the neighbors love the same team you do. It’s loads of fun: like a festival.
Tailgating is basically having a barbeque in the parking lot outside the stadium before the game. You park, set up a portable grill, make hotdogs/hamburgers/etc. and have a few drinks.
*Avoiding* drunk driving is probably a factor in why people tailgate; you can get over the legal limit before entering the stadium because you’ve already done the driving. Which also means you don’t need to buy (as much) overpriced concessions once you’re inside.
It also helps timing and traffic; if you try to show up ‘just in time’ for the game… so does everyone else. You get stuck in parking traffic. Having people trickle in 1-4 hours early for tailgating means they don’t have to worry about missing the start of the game due to traffic, and there’s less traffic for everyone else.
Tailgating also makes for a bigger party than you could fit in a bar. You can meet and hang out with new people, because hundreds or thousands of people are doing the same thing; it’s a different vibe than just going to a bar with the handful of people you’re actually sitting with at the game.
Dude we’ve got ten COLLEGE football stadiums larger than the largest soccer stadium in the UK, and the second largest UK soccer stadium isn’t even in our top 20 of COLLEGE football stadiums. The number of people at a game is so much higher than Europe so people party, eat, drink, etc before a game in the parking lot or a parking lot before the game because it’s easier and more enjoyable than crowding into a bar or something. It’s also a great atmosphere and a great way to hang out with like minded fans.
Tailgating is more than the sum of its parts. People come from hours away to meet up with their friends to watch or pregame the game this way. Some may go to the game, others won’t. It’s extremely social, with people often making friends with the tailgates nearby or having folks stumble into theirs, making more new friends. A good tailgate often will have a massive tv to watch the game or other games, and a bbq with at a minimum burgers and sausages. Some people are insane and have trailers they bring that convert into basically mini sports bars.
The town my team plays in has a population of 50k. 25k of that is students. The football stadium holds 60k. Best guess here, but at least 60k people come to just enjoy the gameday atmosphere for a big game. There are simply not enough bars to fit that many people.
When you party at the stadium before the game (pregame), and/or during (if you don’t have tickets)
Tailgating is usually an opportunity to meet friends before a football game. For college football tailgating, it’s often with people you attended college with and don’t otherwise see that often. I may not see someone for five years, but I’ll see them at a tailgate.
It can be anything from drinking in a parking lot stall with friends, to having a barbecue, playing cornhole, and more. There’s a culture around tailgating, and you’ll often have people from other areas walk by (it’s customary to offer strangers to join in). It’s basically a big party.
Why not a bar? People do that as well, but the bars are far from the stadium and very crowded. Tailgating gives you the opportunity to have a space with just your friends, and then walk into the stadium.
The average football game is around 3 hours, so it’s enough time to get over any buzz. We also have designated drivers.
While college football tailgating is fun, the best tailgating I’ve seen are the LSU fans at the College World Series. They tailgate for 2 solid weeks, even if their team isn’t in the series. Much #respect.
Tailgating is fun, you go to a parking lot, there are a ton of people drinking and grilling and milling around, people are playing music and playing games, it’s a great time. Bringing your own beer and drinking it in the parking lot is also substantially cheaper than going to a bar, ditto with food.
As for who drives home, well, sadly drunk driving is very common in the US, despite being broadly socially unacceptable (a big sea change from ~50 years ago) and heavily punished, especially after college or NFL football games. Just a sad fact of life. Ideally people will either sober up at the game or rely on a designated driver, but in practice, there’s a lot of people getting arrested for DUI and a whole lot more people driving drunk who get away with it.
I believe in the UK they call it a picnic in the car park.
Bars don’t have food like this. Though you gotta selectively befriend the the proud cooks of the tailgaters
https://youtu.be/CsvKKP9NjEg
Tailgating is the best part of the American football experience. I am weird because I don’t give a shit about the actual game, but I love to tailgate. It’s so much fun. Most people serve great food, good drinks and hang out with friends before and after the game.
My crew usually had a designated sober driver.
Why tailgate instead of just going to a bar? The bars are insanely crowded, expensive, and there’s usually long waits. Tailgates are a much better way to enjoy game day.
Why go to a bar when you can do THIS? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-c2juBu2-Y
i think you got a lot of good answers about tail gaiting football games, but it also applies to tons of other sports. hell, we even tailgate concerts. i used to tailgate the jimmy buffet concert at Jones Beach NY every year, it was a huge all day party down by the beach, i never even actually bothered to go see the show.
>why not just go to a bar?
In many college towns especially, the stadium will more than or roughly double to population of the area. That infrastructure doesn’t exist. The bar(s) and restaurants can’t survive on saturdays or sundays alone.
As an example, the population of Mt. Pleasant is roughly 25,000. Kelly Short Stadium (fire up Chips) has a record attendance of 35,000. City of Ann Arbor is 120,000ish and The Big House will hold 111,000.
The bars will also be packed for those who aren’t into tailgating.
Basically tailgating is a big open air party with you and all your fellow revelers. Its a great time.
Remove the “American” from European-American immediately! 😂😂
> why not just go to a bar?
You go ahead and open a bar near the stadium – it will be COMPLETELY empty 99% of the time, until there’s a game happening and then it’ll be PACKED wall to wall with no space to move and a 45 minute wait for drinks….
We’re talking about 60k to 110k people per game. Businesses cannot support that kind of variance in patronage. A football game can literally double the population of some college towns.
Plus, bars suck. Tailgates are BYOB, there’s more space to move around and socialize, you save money, and there’s games and a sense of community.
Man if you think that’s crazy you should have seen the parking lot of a Grateful Dead show.
I live just outside of KC, and it is extremely popular here. There are not always bars around, and public transit is almost non-existent some places. So, people will load up their car, truck, van, bus, whatever, with everything from food, to drinks, to games, and make a day out of it. You go to the stadium, park, eat, and drink.
Yes, people will go in to the stadium after drinking. Some will go in and out, and others will just hang out in the parking lot during the game. Most people will have designated drivers, some will quit drinking in time to be able to drive, and I am sure some, will drive when they shouldn’t. It is a big social event, and a lot of people will interact with one another.
At the high school my kids attend there are many families that tailgate before the football games … often people have pizza and other food. Our school is not huge. About 300 students graduate every year but the football parents and even parents of the marching band tailgate before the game. It helps insure we have a good parking spot and we get a meal before the game.
For college football games, they probably don’t sell beer in the stadium. I heard there are exceptions.
I live in Milwaukee, WI and we also tailgate before Brewers games (MLB baseball team, if you’re not familiar). It’s a huge part of our city’s culture. Why do we do it? Because it’s fun!
* You play games, grill/eat food, and yes some people drink
* Not everyone drinks
* Smart people have a designated driver – some people aren’t smart, unfortunately
* You both interact with your own friends and often the people around you – it’s a welcoming, inviting atmosphere and very friendly
* You tailgate instead of a bar because you can go to a bar anytime, but only tailgate before games
>I don’t understand the philosophy or culture behind it.
Tailgating is a pre-game ritual/gathering for people attending sporting events, though it’s much more popular for football than other major sports.
>Do the people just drink in a parking lot with their friends – is that it?
Drinking is a huge part of it, but it’s also a time for people to grill food, play games, and do some pre-game rallying for your team.
>Or do they go to the stadium after drinking?
Most tailgaters do go to the game, but some people without tickets still might show up to tailgate and then catch the game at a local bar.
>Who will drive the cars if everyone will get drunk?
Unfortunately, the drunk people.
>Do people socially interact or just stay and socialize with the group of friends they came with?
Season ticket holders tend to set up their tailgates in the same location for every game. This goes on for so long that neighboring groups often become friendly with each other, bit there’s generally not much “roaming” among the regulars. I’ve got several friends, each with their own tailgating group, so when I go to a game I usually stop by all of their spots, but they almost never leave until it’s time to head into the stadium.
>And lastly – why not just go to a bar?
Bars aren’t open at 7am when tailgating starts for 1pm kickoffs.
TIL. Europeans don’t like a party.
> Do the people just drink in a parking lot with their friends – is that it?
Yes, but since other people are doing the same sometimes people mingle. Grilling food is also involved.
> Or do they go to the stadium after drinking?
Also yes.
> Who will drive the cars if everyone will get drunk?
Someone stays sober or sobers up prior to leaving. Yea there are always assholes that drive drunk, but that has nothing to do with tailgating.
> Do people socially interact or just stay and socialize with the group of friends they came with?
Some do, some don’t. There are no rules that says you stick to who you come with. People tend to be friendly though.
> And lastly – why not just go to a bar?
It is expensive to drink in bars in the United States. Depending on location a beer in a bar can be 6x-10x more expensive than just picking up a six pack.
I think pictures might be the best way to explain this, because it’s not simply people drinking in/around their cars (though that can be it sometimes) —
It’s often more of a giant festival before a game. People enjoy having more options than simply getting drunk at bars, and many of our college towns or areas near stadiums don’t have huge downtowns where a hundred-thousand fans can all get drunk together. Plus tailgates are often more kid-friendly than a bar.
Here’s “the Grove”, a tailgating area in Mississippi; you can see it’s a lot of tents/booths with food and drink with people milling about: https://athleticdirectoru.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Tailgate.jpeg. The town’s population is 25,000, so it probably wouldn’t be able to handle the 60,000 fans who attend the game every Saturday.
At the University of Michigan, people tailgate on the golf course (you can see an actual oven and a guy making an omelette here)
https://arc-anglerfish-arc2-prod-advancelocal.s3.amazonaws.com/public/MBAKGIFCLBHAVI4QVMRNLQL4JU.jpg. The town here is only 100,000 and the stadium capacity is also 100,000.
It’s sort of a communal experience to cook, drink, and spend time outdoors with friends before a game. Then you can just walk to the stadium (no driving after drinking required). It’s born out of necessity but also an inexpensive way to party with friends without having to drive to the game after partying (ideally, it actually prevents drunk driving)
It’s no different than pre-gaming at a pub before a football (soccer) match. The difference is tailgaters do it in the parking lot rather than in a pub. It’s like a giant, outdoor party, where people bring all kinds of food, drinks, yard games, etc…some groups stick to their own little space, where others welcome and hang out with everyone, strangers or not. You could go to a bar before-hand, and MANY do this. But you could also tailgate where you bring the food and alcohol you want, can throw a football around, play yard games like corn-hole, walk around, play music, etc. The real hard-core tailgaters will set up tents and sometimes even bring TV’s to watch other matches going on before the game. Some folks may not even have tickets to the game; they just go and tail-gate to be around the atmosphere.
A lot of people sober up during the game if they go in drunk. Most college football stadiums don’t serve alcohol, so you get your alcohol in pre-game, go to the game for 3-4 hours, then you walk out sober. That, or you bring a DD, or you take a taxi or public transport over. A lot of people coming from out of town for an event will book a nearby hotel as well so they have somewhere close or nearby to go to afterwards to avoid drunk driving; something within walking or public transport/ride-share distance.
And to emphasize again, WE DON’T ALL TAILGATE. Many of us go to bars instead.
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You also have to realize that our stadiums are massive, especially for football.
* Every NFL stadium (32) holds over 61,500. Only 2 current English Premier League stadiums can make this claim (Spurs and United).
* 21 college football stadiums hold over 75,000 people. That’s 21 college football stadiums that hold more than the Premier League’s largest stadium: Old Trafford.
* We have 13 college football stadiums that hold more than the largest NFL stadium (over 82,500). There are only 13 football (soccer) stadiums IN THE WORLD that hold more than this amount. [Source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_association_football_stadiums_by_capacity).
* 8 College football stadiums hold over 100,000 people.
Factor in that, plus how much alcohol Americans drink, bars around a stadium could not sustain that kind of capacity. In college football in particular, **there have been a few cases where fans have drank entire districts or towns dry in one day.**