Why Grilling and Football are Right for Each Other

We’re officially into the new NFL season now—which means, for many, that we’re also well into prime grilling season. Grilling and football just seem to go together—and even if you don’t personally grill before each big game, you probably know folks who do.

Steak and football just seem right for each other, in a way that other food pairings just don’t. Most of us don’t associate football games with tacos, for example, or with spaghetti. That’s not to say that there’s anything wrong with eating those foods while watching the game. But for whatever reason, they just don’t seem as simpatico as football and grilling.

Have you ever wondered why that is—besides the fact that steak is just delicious, and that the grilling experience itself is so fun, such a perfect lead-up to the start of the game?

Our theory is that it has everything to do with the social nature of steak. This is not a solitary food. As we’ve written before, it’s meant to be explored socially, communally. It’s uncommon to see someone spending time outside grilling a small steak for one; much more frequently, we see folks gathered around a grill, preparing steaks for a group, then savoring the experience around the table together.

Grilling brings people together. If you’ve ever attended a backyard party where someone was grilling, you’ve probably notices some people huddled around the grill, eying the food and talking.

It’s the same with sports, and perhaps with football in particular. Cheering/screaming in front of the TV is always more fun when you’re doing it with close friends; wins seem sweeter, and losses somehow easier to handle, when you’re watching them in the living room with your best pals. Football, too, is something that brings people together. It’s something we savor together.

When you combine the two, then—grilling and football—you have a perfect social experience. You can make an entire day out of it, grilling and eating and watching the game. And if it’s a Diablo you’re grilling, that makes the entire day all the more special; all the more shareable.