Football Party Food Ideas + Tips

Football season is here, and if you’re hosting a football game day party, we’re sharing food ideas to serve, as well as tips on hosting a game day party in your home. This post has been sponsored by The Coca-Cola® Company and SheSpeaks. 

Football Party Food Ideas + Tips

All things fall and football season is just around the corner, and we can’t wait to have friends over for food + football. This year, we’re even more excited about watching all the football games because of a close friend/family member being drafted to play professional football. We can’t wait to watch him make his debut on the field this season. One of my favorite things about football season is all the savory food and delicious appetizers to eat, as well as keeping a cold Coca-Cola® in my hand. Are you planning to entertain guests in your home during this year’s football season? If so, we have some tips and a football party menu to check out below.

Football Entertaining Tips

Here are a few things to keep in mind as you plan your football party. 

Plan ahead of time. Take this from us, when we have to grocery shop and do everything the same day as our party, we’re exhausted. Plus, we’re rushing, trying to make sure we get everything done in just a few short hours. It’s better to make your list about a week or two ahead of time and shop a day or two before your party.

When it comes to shopping, we start at Sam’s Club. We love shopping at Sam’s Club, and if you follow us on Instagram, you see us share our Sam’s Club adventures and tips quite often. The biggest tip when it comes to getting in and out of Sam’s Club in time and on budget is using the Scan & Go app. We stop and tell people standing in line to download the app and skip standing in line; using the Scan & Go app is super easy and convenient. You can also use Club Pickup, but I still prefer to go in and shop. By shopping at Sam’s Club, we’re able to load up on everything we need for the entire football season.

For example, we purchased Member’s Mark Ultra PaperPlates, 204 count, which will last the entire season. We also picked up Coca-Cola® products Coca-Cola® Mini Cans 30 count, and Sprite® 12 oz, 35 count. Sam’s Club carries a variety of Coca-Cola® products; so it’s a great place to start when planning an event. Plus we’re buying in bulk, giving us more than enough for our party.

Stock up on paper products. This is another item you can grab at Sam’s Club. You’ll need lots of paper cups, plates, napkins, bath tissue, and more. Sam’s Club has you covered because you do not ever want to run out of bath tissue during the middle of a party. 

Clean your house a few days before the party. If you’re doing a deep clean, I would suggest cleaning the Saturday before. For light cleaning, you can clean the day before the party. The most significant areas you need to clean are the bathroom(s), kitchen, and any area your guests plan to use (dining room, living/family room). 

Double-check your list a few days before game day. If you’re hosting a party on Saturday, check your list on Wednesday to make sure you everything you need or plan to buy.

Other things you might want to think about is seating for your guests. Do you need to rent chairs and tables? If so, reserve those a few weeks before your party. Or, check Sam’s Club for these products to purchase. If you plan on hosting a lot of parties, it may be best to buy these items. 

Setting up your space. When it comes to a game day party, not only do you need to think about appetizers to serve, but the location of the food to the proximity of the TV. Your guests will want the food close by the T.V., so they can eat and watch the game at the same time. If possible, set up a food station near the game watching area.

Decorating For Game Day

There are a few ways to go about decorating your space for game day. If crafts and decor ideas are not your forte, then I suggest focusing on the food. You can purchase cupcakes from Sam’s Club to save time, and add a cupcake topper to match your them. I’m also sharing another concept that is easy to do. You can find football party supplies just about anywhere, and it’s easy to grab a few things and set them up in your space. For this idea, I did not make one thing, except putting the balloon decoration together. Everything else I picked up from various party supply stores, as well as shopped what I had in my storage closet. I will say this, having a themed decor compliments this party idea.

Football Party Menu – What To Serve At Your Game Day Party

For our football food menu, we wanted to keep things simple, yet delicious. For a great beverage choice, make our Blueberry Lemon Lime Bourbon Cocktail. This whiskey cocktail mixed with Sprite®  is a great drink to serve at your game day party. After one taste, you’ll see exactly what we mean. It’s just that good. Make sure you drink responsibly and never drink and drive; this drink is for 21+ only guests.

For a dip idea, our Spinach + Avocado Dip can be made ahead of time. This is another crucial tip when hosting a game day party. Try to serve food that requires little to no prep time, can be cooked ahead, or tossed into a pressure cooker. This spinach dip can be made a day ahead (I wouldn’t suggest making it more than 24 hours before your party, to keep it fresh).

Our Loaded Chicken Quesadilla Bake recipe is one you can use for game day or a dinner idea. It’s a sheet pan meal idea, after cooking the chicken, everything else goes in the oven for about twenty minutes. With chicken, peppers, cheese, and tortillas, this recipe is a crowd-pleaser, and it pairs well with a Coca Cola® or Sprite®

Game Day Cocktail Idea: Blueberry Lemon Lime Bourbon Cocktail

Ingredients:

• 6 ounces Sprite®
• 2 ounces bourbon whiskey
• 2 ounces triple sec
• 1/2 cup blueberries
• ice 
• lemon slices
• lime slices

Directions:

1. Into a cocktail mixing tin, muddle one lemon and one lime slice, add several ice cubes, Sprite, and bourbon whiskey. Using a long-handled bar spoon mix thoroughly. 
2. Into a blender add blueberries, triple sec and one cup of ice, pulse until the ice is crushed, fill two standard rocks glasses half-way with the blueberry mixture and top with the Sprite® and bourbon whiskey mixture.
3. Add a large ice cube to each glass, garnish with slices of lemon and lime slices. 
4. Serve.

Game Day Recipe: Loaded Chicken Quesadilla Bake {sheet pan recipe}

Ingredients:

• 12 flour tortillas 
• 3 cups chicken tenders chopped
• 4 tablespoons canola oil, divided (more if necessary)
• 1 tablespoon Kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black peppercorns
• 3 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 3 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded 
• 2 large red bell peppers thinly sliced
• 1 large sweet onion thinly sliced
• 3 cups marinara sauce

Directions:

1. Rinse and pat dry 12-15 chicken tender strips, put the chicken into a large bowl and add two tablespoons of canola oil, Kosher salt, freshly cracked black peppercorns, Italian seasoning and mix well and marinate for 15 minutes. 
2. Place a large skillet over med-high heat and add two tablespoons of canola oil, when the oil is hot add several chicken tenders at a time, do not crowd the skillet, turn pieces over when browned and cook through for five more minutes. 
3. Arrange cooked chicken on a plate lined with paper towels to absorb excess oil. Continue to cook the chicken until all of the pieces are cooked. When the chicken is cool enough to handle safely, chop with a sharp knife, and set aside.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
5. Arrange six (6) large flour tortillas on a large cooking sheet, cover tortillas with shredded mozzarella cheese, then top with marinara sauce, add chopped chicken then top with more mozzarella cheese. Top with six more large tortillas. Place the sheet pan on the center rack and bake for 20 minutes. 
6. Remove the sheet pan from the oven and allow the Loaded Chicken Quesadillas to cool then use a sharp knife to cut into sections. 
7. Serve. 

Game Day Dip Recipe: Spinach + Avocado Dip

Ingredients:

• 2 large bags of spinach, cleaned and washed
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese, grated
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 avocados, cut in half and seed removed
• sea salt to taste

Directions:

1. Into a food processor add half-bag batches of spinach at a time, add four ounces of softened cream cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano and mozzarella cheeses, two garlic cloves, and pulse until smooth.
2. Add another half-bag of spinach and pulse until fully incorporated. 
3. Add the remaining four ounces of softened cream cheese, one avocado, and another half-bag and mix well. 
4. Add the last half-bag of spinach and the remaining avocado, extra virgin olive oil, and sea salt. Pulse until smooth.
5. Spoon into a serving bowl.
6. Serve with corn tortilla chips.

So many delicious choices, plus they are easy to prep and make for a football game day party. Adding chips for the dip, simple decorations, and stocking up on Coca-Cola® products from Sam’s Club, we’re ready to for football season! Use our football party menu, and stop by your Sam’s Club to pick up Coca-Cola® products and everything else you need to get ready for game day!

Cheers to a fun + foodie delicious football season!