Gifts for Tailgaters: How To Make a Football Tailgate Memorable

What Is a Tailgate?

If you’re not particularly interested in football culture and are searching for someone else’s gift, you may not understand exactly what a tailgate is. With this in mind, let’s look into the details of tailgating, so you can give your tailgate-obsessed loved one the perfect gift. 

A tailgate party is a celebration that occurs prior to a sports game — typically football. Most frequently, tailgating will occur outside the football stadium in the parking lot right before the game, with people drinking and cooking near the back of their cars or trucks — which happens to be called a tailgate. That said, it’s not unheard of for people to celebrate and “tailgate” at home, but it is less common than the traditional parking lot party.

Tailgating can involve a decent amount of preparation for the tailgaters, who bring drinks, meals, barbeques, seating supplies, and anything else they feel is necessary to enhance their experience. Put yourself in your giftee’s shoes and consider gifts that could help get them ready for the big game.

Why Tailgate?

While you’re putting yourself in the shoes of your tailgater loved one, a great way to understand them even better is to consider the core ideas of tailgating.

Many people go to tailgates just to drink and party, but others do it to enjoy meals. The food at a tailgate is often homemade, sometimes even freshly cooked in the parking lot on a portable barbeque or grill. Since everyone is bringing their own food, there’s always a wonderful variety of tasty dishes that you can try.

Tailgating is also a perfect way to build a sense of community while meeting new people and making new friends (especially people with like-minded interests at a game where you’re supporting the same team).

So, for your tailgater, search for a gift that best suits how they socialize at a tailgate party. Are they someone who likes to cook on the grill? Perhaps they’re more of a drinker and conversation starter. Whatever they are, choose your gift wisely and you’ll put a smile on your friend’s face when they see you know them — and their pregame needs — well.

Setup Gifts for Tailgaters

A tailgate is nothing without a good setup. If you want to purchase a gift for a football fan with their best interest in mind, why not start with a cool tailgate setup?

A tailgate setup can consist of many different working parts, depending on how committed your tailgater is. Most basic setups start with the true centerpiece of it all: the tailgate. 

If your tailgater is lucky enough to have a pickup truck, that’s great. A pickup truck not only has the space and strength to carry heavier items like a portable grill, but it also works as a perfect bench or a table for when the tailgate party is in full swing.

If your tailgater isn’t a truck owner, no worries! All tailgates are accepted at the party, and all work well for carrying your setup supplies. Speaking of supplies, other important tailgate setup supplies to note might include:

• Lawn Chairs: Comfortable and perfect for outdoor get-togethers, consider a lawn chair with cupholders for ideal seating at your giftee’s celebration.

• Foldable Tables: Exactly what you need if your car trunk is limited in space, a foldable table will be portable and easy to bring along for the grilling at your tailgater’s party.

Cooking Gifts for Tailgaters

When it comes to the indulging done at the tailgate, your giftee will likely have certain snacks and drinks they prefer to enjoy at the event. If your tailgating loved one will bring the larger, bulkier tools and supplies, read this section for an idea of some items needed for cooking or food and drink transportation. 

Some of the most important supplies to bring to the party would be:

• A Cooler: For the beer drinker, or soda lover, this is a staple for a tailgate, especially on those hotter days. Make sure to provide some ice as well to keep things extra cool.

• Barbeque Grill: For your beloved grill chef, it’s time to bring the heat! Choose a smaller or more portable grill to ensure easy transportation to the tailgate. And if you’d like, feel free to add some grillable snacks to pair — we’ll provide you with some examples in a second.

• Spatula and Supplies: With or without a grill, feel free to gift your pal some tools for cooking at the tailgate. Whether charcoal or a simple spatula, choose items perfect for the grill. We recommend checking out our TRUFF Geometric Logo Grilling Spatula. It comes in a sleek design and is made of durable stainless steel.

Drinks for Tailgaters

If your tailgater just wants a quick and easy drink, don’t sweat it. Just keep your gift simple. 

Most tailgaters opt for a beer of their choice, likely a light beer or something that comes in a six-pack. However, others may be more interested in something with a different flavor such as an alcoholic seltzer or a homemade punch.

Regardless, if you know your tailgater well enough and would like to purchase their drinks for the event, consider what you usually see them reaching for. That is likely what they’d appreciate. And if what they usually reach for happens to be nonalcoholic, that’s not a problem at all!

Just as you can enjoy a good beer at a tailgate, you can happily sip a soda or nonalcoholic seltzer water. At the end of the day, tailgates don’t have an age limit or restriction so don’t assume your tailgater is a drinker; it’s all just fun and good times for everyone! In fact, many tailgaters are there for delicious food.

Foods for Tailgaters

Food at the tailgate comes in many different forms, so you have plenty of choices if you choose to cook for your giftee. If you’re not interested in cooking, providing the ingredients for tailgate meals works just as well as a gift!

Most tailgates have standard snacks like chips or pretzels for light eating, but others will go a step further with dishes from the grill.

Traditional American tailgate foods may include:

• Hot dogs: Always a classic for any stadium, you could supply your tailgater with hot dogs, buns, sauce variations, and other toppings of your choosing.

• Burgers or Other Sandwich Variations: For the grill, burgers are a quick and easy dish to make outside at the tailgate. If you’re interested in providing some home cooked dishes for your tailgater, feel free to try making them something like our delicious NY-Style TRUFF Chopped Cheese Sandwich recipe. It uses our TRUFF Original Hot Sauce for an added kick.

• Chicken Wings: Another classic American meal for at-home or in the crowd. If you’d like to bring some wings to your tailgater for them to enjoy without the fuss of cooking themselves, try our TRUFFalo™ Wings recipe for some tasty, zesty chicken wings.

Elevate Their Tailgate

Now that you know what exactly a tailgate is, how it works, and what you can bring to your tailgater’s table, we’re sure you’ll make the right decision. Remember that every person is different and that it’s up to you to decide what gift suits your loved one.

There are plenty of options to choose from and little room to go wrong. And if all else fails? Don’t be afraid to ask for help! Your giftee definitely wants a good gift just as much as you want to give one, so asking for a bit of guidance shouldn’t hurt.

Overall, you know best who the person you’re giving a gift to is and what they’d need the most. Just do whatever you think feels right and we know you’ll be TRUFFtastic.

Sources:

Tailgating and Pregaming by College Students with Alcohol Offenses: Patterns of Alcohol Use and Beliefs | PMC

Tailgating isn't just a party, research shows | USA Today

Tailgating: How the Pre-Game Tradition Can Be Traced to Ancient Times | HISTORY