A Guide to National Tailgating Day

National Tailgating Day = Life

National Tailgating Day 2018—The first Saturday in September is National Tailgating Day. For Hungry Fans everywhere, National Tailgating Day is one of the most important days on the calendar. It's right up there with birthdays, anniversaries and national holidays—and for good reason. 80% of America tailgates annually because it gives us all a reason to come together over our two favorite things: sports and food. We Americans love celebrating the spirit of competition with gobs of delicious (and often indulgent) game day nom noms and refreshing drinks as we gather with our friends and family. National Tailgating Day is BIG and here's why…

National Tailgating Day represents an entire season of awesome game day experiences! It encompasses the perfect blend of tailgating traditions with new and innovative ways to eat, drink and cheer on your team to victory. Did we mention that pound for pound, Hungry Fans consume more tailgate food per year than holiday food on Christmas and Thanksgiving combined? Oh yeah. Check out some crazy fun tailgate recipes that rival our favorite (foodie) holidays.

Leftover Turkey Cocktail
The best of both worlds: a use for Thanksgiving leftovers + hair of the dog on Game Day.

National Tailgating Day kicks the season off with a clean slate—we're thus far undefeated and full of hope that this is the year our favorite team takes home the championship. We proudly sport our jerseys. We deck out our trucks and even our smokers in team colors and logos. And we rock the game day march. Check out some of our favorite game day gear for your 2018 tailgate season.

Game Day Gear

National Tailgating Day 2018 is an action-packed Saturday with over 20 games and 3 races that is expected to reach over 200M people nationwide. If you're looking to tune in, be sure to check out the game day schedule below and get your tailgate on from the parking lot, your favorite watering hole or from home.

MLB

4 p.m. Detroit at New York Yankees » Fox Sports 1

7 p.m. Tampa Bay at Cleveland » Fox Sports 1

7 p.m. Milwaukee at Washington » MASN, WJFK (106.7 FM), WFED (1500 AM, 820 AM)

7 p.m. Baltimore at Kansas City » MASN2, WTEM (980 AM), WJZ (105.7 FM)

TENNIS

11 a.m. U.S. Open, third round » ESPN2

7 p.m. U.S. Open, third round » ESPN2

SOCCER

7:30 a.m. English Premier League: Leicester City vs. Liverpool » NBC Sports Network

9:30 a.m. German Bundesliga: Bayer Leverkusen vs. Wolfsburg » Fox Sports 1

9:30 a.m. German Bundesliga: Eintracht Frankfurt vs. Werder Bremen » Fox Sports 2

10 a.m. English Premier League: Chelsea vs. Bournemouth » NBC Sports Network

11 a.m. French Ligue 1: Nimes vs. Paris St. Germain » beIN Sports

12:30 p.m. English Premier League: Manchester City vs. Newcastle United » WRC (Ch. 4), WBAL (Ch. 11)

12:30 p.m. German Bundesliga: VfB Stuttgart vs. Bayern Munich » Fox Sports 2

2:30 p.m. Spanish La Liga: Real Madrid vs. Leganes » beIN Sports

GOLF

6:30 a.m. European PGA Tour: Made in Denmark, third round » Golf Channel

1 p.m. Web.com Tour: DAP Championship, third round » Golf Channel

3 p.m. PGA Tour: Dell Technologies Championship, second round » Golf Channel

6:30 p.m. LPGA Tour: Portland Classic, third round » Golf Channel

AUTO RACING

5:55 a.m. Formula One: Italian Grand Prix, practice » ESPN2

8:55 a.m. Formula One: Italian Grand Prix, qualifying » ESPN2

12:30 p.m. NASCAR Xfinity Series, VFW 200, qualifying » NBC Sports Network

2 p.m. NASCAR Cup Series, Southern 500, qualifying » NBC Sports Network

3:30 p.m. NASCAR Xfinity Series, VFW 200 » WRC (Ch. 4), WBAL (Ch. 11)

7:30 p.m. IndyCar: Grand Prix of Portland, qualifying » NBC Sports Network

HORSE RACING

2:30 p.m. Spinaway Stakes » Fox Sports 2

5:30 p.m. Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Woodward Stakes » NBC Sports Network

COLLEGE FOOTBALL (Saturday Only)

Schedule
All schedules courtesy of The Washington Post.

Tailgating is an American pastime. It's what we do. We excel at it. And in the process, we make new friends, we share memorable experiences, we break bread communally and we engage in a kind of camaraderie that's hard to find anywhere else. We here at Hungry Fan® want to see how you tailgate with your friends and family. Sharing means caring so be sure to #HungryFan your game day experiences, #HungryFanFood your tasty game day nom noms or submit your tailgating inspirations here for a chance to win some delectable National Tailgating Day spice rub.

HungryFanFood

Happy National Tailgating Day 2018, Hungry Fans!

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