How Many Chicken Wings Are Consumed on Super Bowl Sunday? A Lot.

Chicken wings and Super Bowl Sunday go together like peas and carrots. Every year, Americans consume massive quantities of these tasty game-day snacks while watching the big game. But just how many chicken wings do we eat on Super Bowl Sunday? The numbers are pretty staggering.

A Brief History of Chicken Wings and Football

The pairing of chicken wings and football can be traced back to 1964 at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo New York. According to legend co-owner Teressa Bellissimo fried up some leftover wings in hot sauce as a late-night snack for her son and his friends. The guys loved them so much that the Bellissimos put them on the menu the next day, and the Buffalo wing was born.

At the same time, sports bars with multiple TVs were becoming popular, making football more of a communal viewing experience. Wings were the perfect shareable and affordable game-day food. A match made in chicken wing heaven.

Massive Consumption on Super Bowl Sunday

Every year, the National Chicken Council releases data on how many wings will be consumed on Super Bowl Sunday. And every year, the numbers get more astronomical.

For Super Bowl LVIII in 2024, the NCC predicted that 1.42 billion wings would be consumed. That’s enough to give nearly 4 wings to every person in America.

This year, for Super Bowl LIX, the NCC expects wing consumption to top 1.47 billion. That’s an increase of around 20 million wings compared to 2024.

To put 1.47 billion wings in perspective:

• It’s enough wings to stretch from Kansas City to Philadelphia (the Super Bowl LIX cities) over 60 times,

• If every NFL player ate 50 wings a day, it would take them 720 years to eat that many wings.

• Laid end-to-end, the wings would circle the Earth over 3 times.

So Super Bowl Sunday is essentially a national chicken wing eating contest. Americans can’t seem to get enough of these saucy game-time snacks.

Why Such High Demand on Super Bowl Sunday?

There are a few key reasons why chicken wings are so incredibly popular on Super Bowl Sunday:

Convenience – Wings are easy to eat while watching the game. No utensils required. You can toss them in a variety of sauces for lots of flavors.

Value – Wings used to be an inexpensive byproduct for poultry producers. Restaurants realized they could charge low prices but make decent margins on them, especially paired with beer sales.

Communal Aspect – Wings are perfect for sharing with a group. And football is best enjoyed as a communal experience.

Traditions – Eating wings on Super Bowl Sunday is now ingrained in our culture. Many fans have been doing it for years.

Pair Well With Beer – The salty, spicy wings make fans thirsty…for more beer! It’s a win-win for restaurants serving wings.

Addictive Taste – Simply put, wings are delicious. The lip-smacking flavors and crispy skin make them hard to stop eating.

Wing Prices on the Rise

Due to various factors like inflation, higher costs for chicken producers, and supply chain issues, the price of wings is on the rise.

Restaurants like Wingstop and Buffalo Wild Wings have had to raise their wing prices over the past couple years just to maintain profits on this popular menu item.

But the higher prices don’t seem to be deterring wing lovers yet. Demand has stayed strong heading into this Super Bowl Sunday. Many fans consider wings a staple of game day and are willing to pay a premium.

Regional Preferences

While Buffalo-style chicken wings with blue cheese dressing are the original, different regions of the U.S. have developed their own favorite wing styles over the years.

Some examples:

• Buffalo – Medium hot sauce, blue cheese dressing

• Kansas City – Sweet & smoky barbecue sauce

• Dallas – Sweet & spicy Asian glaze

• Tampa – Cracked black pepper rub, citrus sauce

• Atlanta – Tangy lemon pepper seasoning

No matter your regional wing preferences, Super Bowl Sunday is the ultimate day to indulge. Good luck to all the hungry wing fans out there! Pace yourself…it’s going to be a long day of eating.