# Why are football championship games called "bowls?" **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 28, 2003, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069 "2003-10-28T18:04:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/21 "2003-10-28T23:08:33Z")
Indeed the Rose Bowl was the first postseason college football game to pit to two of the top teams in the country. Hence, the Rose Bowl’s trademarked nickname of “The Granddaddy of Them All.” Their trademark says that that particular nickname has been in use since 1951. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/22 "2003-10-29T01:10:52Z")
Finally, according to the OED, the first time the Rose Bowl was used as a phrase to describe a game and not a stadium was in 1930. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/23 "2003-10-29T02:27:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dutchboy208 \* > \*\*The first time I remember a bowl game being corporatized was the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl- when FSU won, I believe in '99. > \*\* I think that game deserves some notoriety because it was incredibly over-corporatized! I recall that at least one instance of the word “Tostitos” was visible in practically every camera angle during the game. They caught a bit of flak for going overboard… Later BCS championship games were not exactly subdued corporately, but not nearly so bad as the first. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/24 "2003-10-29T03:09:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by sqweels \* > \*\*On to more important question (aside from calling for the Toka Bowl): > > Why is the Bud Bowl between Bud and Bud Lite rather than between Bud and, say, Miller? That’s like having the offensive and defensive squads of the Dallas Cowboys face each other in the Superbowl. \*\* That would be no fun. You’d always know who was going to win. ---
**Author:** ![Flymaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c4cdca/32.png) [@Flymaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flymaster)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/25 "2003-10-29T03:49:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dutchboy208 \* > \*\*The first major stadium named for a sponsor would be the Pontiac Silverdome, I suppose- now abandoned for Ford Field. \*\* Not even close, on two fronts. First of all, it’s the Pontiac Silverdome, because it’s the Silverdome, in Pontiac, Michigan. If it was in Detroit, it would be the Detroit Silverdome. So that’s not a corporate sponsorship. Second, the St. Louis Cardinals played in Busch Stadium, in 1953. Originally, they had wanted to call it Budweiser Stadium, but MLB wouldn’t let them name it directly after a beer, so they called it Busch, after the parent company. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/26 "2003-10-29T04:21:35Z")
The Sugar Bowl claims to be the first “major” bowl to have a corporate sponsor. In 1987, it was billed as the USF&G Sugar Bowl. However, the CapitalOne Bowl was sponsored by the Florida Citrus Bowl starting in 1983. Sunkist sponsored the Fiesta Bowl for the first time in 1986, which was the same year that Sea World sponsored the Holiday Bowl. John Hancock sponsored the Sun Bowl starting in 1987. And on January 1, 1937, Auburn and Villanova played a 7-7 tie in the one and only Bacardi Bowl in Havana. All this info is from the Official NCAA Football Records Book. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/27 "2003-10-29T04:39:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Gary T \* > \*\*Technically, where the Rose Bowl Game is played is not the Rose Bowl Stadium, but the Rose Bowl, which is a stadium. \*\* No. I thought this too, but I took the time to look it up. 😃 Rose Bowl Stadium web site > **[Rose Bowl Stadium - America's Stadium](https://www.rosebowlstadium.com/)** > > The Rose Bowl Stadium is an historic American athletic stadium located in Pasadena, California and host to the annual Rose Bowl Game. Picture captioned “Rose Bowl Stadium” [http://www.tournamentofroses.com/current/rbg.htm](http://www.tournamentofroses.com/current/rbg.htm) Original Rose Bowl Stadium Seats [http://www.sharpseating.com/seats.htm](http://www.sharpseating.com/seats.htm) [http://www.pasadena.com/rose\_bowl.asp](http://www.pasadena.com/rose_bowl.asp) For more information on the Rose Bowl, contact: Rose Bowl Stadium 1001 Rose Bowl Drive Pasadena, CA 91103 (626) 577-3100 And I believe that Rich Stadium, where the Buffalo Bills play, is the first stadium to have sold the name to a non-owner corporate sponsor for a multi-year period. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/28 "2003-10-29T05:46:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BobT \* > And on January 1, 1937, Auburn and Villanova played a 7-7 tie in the one and only Bacardi Bowl in Havana. According to [College Football Data Warehouse](http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/bowls/bowl_results.php?bowl=Bacardi%20Bowl), there were actually 6 Bacardi Bowls going back to 1907. OK, the first 5 were considered “Special Games” and not bowl games, so I guess you’re right too. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/29 "2003-10-29T06:44:36Z")
Yeah, the NCAA says the game has to be after the season to be a “bowl.” As for the big stadium in Pasadena where they play a game on New Year’s Day, it is The Rose Bowl. There are no signs anywhere in it that say “Rose Bowl Stadium” and if you said “Rose Bowl Stadium” people out where I live (in the Pasadena area) would look at you funny. The “Stadium” is added on so people can differentiate between the game and the place where it is played. Especially since there is the possibility that an NFL team might move there. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/30 "2003-10-30T20:24:49Z")
The earliest “Bowl” I can think of was Philadelphia’s Baker Bowl, home for many years to the Athletics. It was built in 1895. Can anyone find an earlier one? ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/31 "2003-10-30T23:31:01Z")
But the Baker Bowl wasn’t given that name until 1913. Before that it was called a few things, like “Philadelphia Baseball Grounds”. And 1913 was also the year that the Yale Bowl was constructed. It opened in 1914, but in 1913 “Yale Bowl” was the name settled on for the stadium. ---
**Author:** ![YWalker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/6f9a4e/32.png) [@YWalker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YWalker)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2003, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/32 "2003-10-31T02:03:36Z")
Here’s some weird trivia - before they added the Bowl game to the Rose Parade, they had chariot races. Where they got that idea I have no clue. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2003, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/33 "2003-10-31T02:23:40Z")
The silent film version of “Ben Hur” had come out around that time (1907 to be precise). Everybody was pretty ga ga over the book back then also. ---
**Author:** ![5cents](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/46a35a/32.png) [@5cents](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5cents)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2003, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/34 "2003-10-31T03:30:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Flymaster \* > \*\*the St. Louis Cardinals played in Busch Stadium, in 1953. Originally, they had wanted to call it Budweiser Stadium, but MLB wouldn’t let them name it directly after a beer, so they called it Busch, after the parent company. \*\* The Chicago Cubs stadium has been named Wrigley (as in the gum company, and the family that owns it) Field since 1926. [http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/chc/ballpark/chc\_ballpark\_history.jsp](http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/chc/ballpark/chc_ballpark_history.jsp) ---
**Author:** ![IUHomer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/90db22/32.png) [@IUHomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IUHomer)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2003, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/35 "2003-10-31T04:11:48Z")
My sarcastic (yet somewhat serious) answer is because the NCAA is too stupid to create a Division I college football playoff, so now of these are truly a “Championsip” of anything. Its not called a Match because…I don’t know, but you don’t associate “matches” with football, in general. They are games where two teams are invited to play and the outcome means nothing beyond…who wins that game that that year’s “bowl”. They really serve no other pupose to the college football season other than money for schools and some sort of sense of “tradition” that defenders of college football over the pro game seem to thrive on. As you can tell, I think its an outdated and stupid system. The BCS, on the other hand, is a new-fangled and stupid system. ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2003, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/36 "2003-10-31T05:02:47Z")
I remain unsatisfied until there’s an Ivy Bowl – and until Cornell wins it. (We lost to Brown last Saturday. BROWN!) –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2003, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/37 "2003-10-31T16:45:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Flymaster \* > \*\*Second, the St. Louis Cardinals played in Busch Stadium, in 1953. Originally, they had wanted to call it Budweiser Stadium, but MLB wouldn’t let them name it directly after a beer, so they called it Busch, after the parent company. \*\* Not exactly. The parent company has been Anheuser-Busch since 1879; it was never just “Busch”. BTW: the first use of “Busch” as a brand name was for a lager produced in March-November, 1955. ---
**Author:** ![Level3Navigator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Level3Navigator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Level3Navigator)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2003, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/38 "2003-10-31T18:54:13Z")
I just keep waiting for corporate sponsorship of others bowls: General Mills creates the Cereal Bowl. Scrubbing Bubbles creats the Toilet Bowl. Any others? ---
**Author:** ![5cents](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/46a35a/32.png) [@5cents](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5cents)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2003, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/39 "2003-10-31T19:50:54Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Level3Navigator \* > \*\*Any others? \*\* The PBA Bowl. [http://www.pba.com/](http://www.pba.com/) Along similar lines, and you’ve got to be at least 30 to get this, but… The Citibank Bowl for Dollars [http://fox43.trb.com/news/wpmt-anni-pic18,0,7663810.photo](http://fox43.trb.com/news/wpmt-anni-pic18,0,7663810.photo) (fits in nicely with the selling-out-for-money angle, too) ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2003, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069/40 "2003-10-31T20:44:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BobT \* > \*\*There are no signs anywhere in it that say “Rose Bowl Stadium” and if you said “Rose Bowl Stadium” people out where I live (in the Pasadena area) would look at you funny. \*\* While I agree that it isn’t ever really referred to as “The Rose Bowl Stadium” I really doubt you would get a particularly funny look if you referred to it that way (I also live in the Pasadena area). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-football-championship-games-called-bowls/210069.md?page=3)