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A Proper British Journalist Explains What “Tailgating” is
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This made me laugh. It’s from Sky Sports, which is a UK outlet. It’s sort of like their ESPN, and they brought on a guy to explain to all the blokes and lads over there what’s going on with this tailgating controversy:
“Tailgating basically is a real integral part of U.S. sports culture, and it involves turning up early for American football games, for instance, and having a party in the car park outside the stadium, eating and drinking hours before the game starts. I imagine U.S sports fans who are into soccer were looking forward to tailgating at the World Cup this summer, but it looks like they’re not going to be able to do that at multiple venues… there were reports on social media that FIFA had actually banned tailgating, and in quite unusual development, FIFA’s own social media channel started responding directly to these reports.”
The other thing that makes me laugh is the b roll, which appears to be cobbled together from various American sporting events. There’s some kind of soccer game at Empower Field in Denver, maybe a friendly. I see Iowa Hawkeyes beanbag boards and Dallas Cowboys jerseys, which begs the question – Why not any video of Philadelphia?
If any Sky Sports editor is reading this blog post, you have full permission to use any video that we”ve shot from Eagles tailgates. That includes the “got high, got drunk, got tasered” guy crushing a bunch of 20 year olds in a shotgun competition. You can also use video of Gregg Matza drinking his honey whiskey and cooking up 4 pounds of shrimp (or 6 pounds for the playoffs). You can b roll of fans doing whippets in Jetro and Mike Scott trying to fight the entire F Low Crew at the same time. We’ll also let you borrow the video of the New York Giants fan pissing his pants and we’ll send you a complimentary “Jetrosexual” t shirt as well.
On a more educational note, the reason tailgating isn’t a thing in Europe is largely because they take mass transit to games. They don’t drive and park in these huge lots. Oftentimes they’ll gather at local pubs or restaurants or city squares and have a drink or two, or three, and then proceed on foot. I was in London years ago and while the EPL was in its offseason, we did the Arsenal stadium tour and you just take the London Tube right to the foot of the venue and get off. Imagine if 95% of people took the Broad Street Line to an Eagles game and that’s basically what it’s like over there.
“Philadelphia is a city defined by its fans and its traditions, and that will not change when the world arrives for FIFA World Cup 2026™. While our fan experience plans are still being finalized with our partners, we are committed to delivering a World Cup that is authentically Philadelphia — and that means celebrating the passion, the energy, and the game-day culture that makes this city unlike any other.”
Kevin has been writing about Philadelphia sports since 2009. He spent seven years in the CBS 3 sports department and started with the Union during the team's 2010 inaugural season. He went to the academic powerhouses of Boyertown High School and West Virginia University. email - k.kinkead@sportradar.com