Being from Buffalo means being able to eat some of the best wings in the world. It means scraping snow and ice off your car on frigid mornings. And it means making a lifelong promise to the city’s NFL franchise, the Bills, through thick and thin, until death do us part.
Growing up in New York’s second largest city, my community was united by loyalty to a football team that always found new ways to break our hearts. And yet, at the beginning of every NFL season, we always found reasons for hope; we couldn’t help it.
Coming from this football-obsessed culture, I often wondered about the psychology of the fandom. This eventually led me to pursue a PhD in sports consumer behavior. As a doctoral student, I was especially interested in one question: Is hobby good for us?
I found a lot of research on the psychological and social effects of fandom, and it certainly made devotion to a team look good. Fandom fosters a sense of belonging, helps adults make friends, increases happiness, and even provides a buffer against traumatic life events.
So fanaticism is cool right?
As famous American football commentator Lee Corso would say: “Not so fast, buddy.”
While fandom appears to be a blessing for our mental health, surprisingly little research has been done on the relationship between fandom and physical health.
So I decided to conduct a series of studies, mainly with people in Western countries, on this topic. I’ve found that being a sports fan can have some drawbacks to your physical health, especially among die-hard fans.
Go for the nachos!
Practicing sports is healthy. But see them? Not so much.
Tailgating culture revolves around alcohol. Research shows that college sports fans binge drink significantly more often than non-fans, are more likely to do something they later regret, and are more likely to drive drunk.
Meanwhile, game viewing parties encourage sitting still for hours and mindlessly snacking. And, of course, the hobby goes hand in hand with ultra-processed food like wings, nachos, pizza and hot dogs.
A fan told me that, when watching the games, his relationship with food is “almost Pavlovian”; He craves “decadent” food the same way he craves popcorn at the movies.
Inside the stadium, healthy options were traditionally scarce and expensive. A Sports Illustrated writer joked in 1966 that fans leave stadiums and arenas with “the same body chemistry as a jelly doughnut.”
Little seems to have changed since then. One Gen Z fan I recently interviewed complained, “You might find a salad with just a head of lettuce and a quarter of a tomato.”
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Eating to relieve anxiety and pain
The relationship between fanaticism and physical health isn’t just about gushing beer, sitting for hours, or devouring hot dogs.
A study analyzed sales in supermarkets. Researchers found that fans consume more calories and fewer healthy foods the day after a loss for their favorite team, a reaction researchers linked to stress and disappointment.
My colleagues and I discovered something similar: the hobby induces what is called “emotional eating.”
Emotions like anger, sadness, and disappointment cause stronger cravings. And this relationship is linked to the performance of your favorite team in key moments. For example, we found that rival and closely contested matches produce more pronounced effects. The emotional states generated by the match are also significantly correlated with the increase in beer sales in the stadium.
High-calorie cultures
In another article, my co-authors and I discovered that fans often feel torn between their desire to make healthy choices and their commitment to being a “true fan.”
Each hobby develops its own culture. These unwritten rules vary from team to team, and are not limited to wearing a cheese-head hat or waving a terrible towel. They also include expectations about drinking, eating, and lifestyle.
These health-related norms are influenced by various factors, such as the culture of the region, the history of the team, and even its sponsorships.
For example, the Cincinnati Bengals partner with Skyline Chili, a regional chain that makes a meat sauce often served on hot dogs or spaghetti. One Bengals fan I interviewed commented that if you go to a Bengals game, sure, you could eat something else, but a “true fan” eats Skyline.
I have two studies in progress that show how hardcore fans tend to align their health habits with the health standards of their hobby. This becomes a way to demonstrate their loyalty to the team, enhance their prestige among other fans, and contribute to what sets the fan base apart in the eyes of its members.
In Buffalo, for example, pregame parties often revolve around alcohol, so much so that Bills fans are known for having over-the-top drinking rituals.
And in New Orleans, Saints fans often link their fandom to Louisiana’s culinary traditions. As one fan explained: “People make a bunch of fried food or huge pots of gumbo or étouffée, and they eat all day, from hours before the game to hours after.”
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The fanaticism of a new generation is more conscious of their health
The fan experience is determined by the culture in which it is inserted. Teams actively contribute to shaping these cultures, and there is a business case for teams to play a larger role in changing some of these norms.
Generation Z is surprisingly health conscious. She’s also less involved with traditional fanaticism.
If stadiums and pre-game parties continue to revolve around beer and nachos, why would a generation accustomed to fitness influencers and “fitness inspiration” join in? To reach this market, I believe the sports industry will need to promote its professional sports teams in new ways.
Some teams are already doing it. Liverpool, the British soccer team, has partnered with exercise equipment company Peloton. Another club, Manchester City, partnered with a non-alcoholic beer brand as the official sponsor of their training kits.
And several European football clubs even joined the “Healthy Stadiums” movement, revamping food options in stadiums and encouraging fans to walk or bike.
For the record, I don’t think the solution is to replace typical fan food with shakes and salads. Alienating core consumers is usually not a sound business strategy.
However, I think it’s reasonable to suggest that sports teams could add more healthy options and carefully evaluate the signals they send through sponsorships.
As one fan I recently interviewed said: “The NFL has had mediocre initiatives like Play 60—a campaign that encourages kids to get at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day—while making tons of money from advertising for beer, food and, once, cigarettes. How can sports leagues expect people to be healthier if they promote unhealthy habits?”
Today’s consumers want to support brands that reflect their values. This is especially true for Generation Z, many of whom are astute enough to spot empty campaigns and quickly reject hypocrisy. In the long run, I think this kind of dissonance—sandwiching a Play 60 ad between ads for Uber Eats and Anheuser-Busch—will backfire.
I, like anyone, understand what makes the fans special, and yes, I have eaten quite a few wings during Bills games. But public health is a pressing concern, and while the sports industry is well positioned to address this issue, fans are not helping. In fact, my research suggests it’s having the opposite effect.
Achieving the balance I propose will be difficult, but the sports industry is full of brilliant problem solvers. In the movie “Moneyball,” Brad Pitt’s character, Billy Beane, famously says that sports teams must “adapt or die.” He was referring to the need for baseball teams to integrate analytics into their decision making.
Professional sports teams finally got that message. Maybe they also understand it for fanaticism.
*Aaron Mansfield is Associate Professor of Sports Management, Merrimack College
This text was originally published in The Conversation
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