***Update – Joey Chestnut (70 1/2) and Miki Sudo (33) captured first place honors in Friday’s 2025 Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog eating contest.  Neither world record (76 for men and 51 for women) was threatened this year.

Happy 249th birthday, America!

Friday, July 4th will be celebrated around the country in a variety of ways.  Backyard barbecues, local fireworks displays, and a number of outdoor activities all make for a fun three-day holiday weekend.

The sports calendar is relatively bare this month

The summer heat brings a lull of major sports competitions during the month of July.

The NFL’s first exhibition game in Canton, Ohio won’t be played until Thursday, July 31 as the Los Angeles Chargers face the Detroit Lions.

College football teams will remain in hibernation in July until practices begin in early August.  Most will kick-off their 2025 season in late August or the first week of September.

Men’s golf will have its final major of the year in July.  The Open Championship will be played in Northern Ireland and is set to tee-off on Thursday, July 17.

Major League Baseball is nearing its mid-point of a lengthy 162-game regular season.  The annual All-Star Game will be played in Atlanta on Tuesday, July 15.

Never fear, sports fans! Major League Eating will brighten your July 4th this Friday in New York City

There really IS a group called Major League Eating.

They sponsor events in which men and women display their unique ability to consume massive amounts of food in a short period of time in contests for prize money paid by sponsors.

Let’s cover a little history as to how a unique Fourth-of-July hot dog eating contest has become a nationally televised spectacle.

Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs has its original location on Coney Island in New York City.  The company began holding its annual hot dog eating contest in 1972 with very little marketing fanfare and mediocre local interest.

A Columbia University English major named George Shea took a job with a New York City public relations firm in 1986.  Shea’s employer gave him the assignment of working with Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs to help increase sales by drawing more attention to the company’s annual hot dog eating event.

George Shea added some personal flair and fun to the festivities. 

He is the man who announces (like a wrestling promoter) a very creative “player” introduction for each of the contestants as they walk onto the dining stage prior to the start of Nathan’s annual event.

He and his brother (Richard) saw great potential in this hot dog eating contest.  They envisioned creating similar events sponsored by food companies to draw more attention to the product line.

In 1997, the two brothers formed Major League Eating (which organizes the competitions) and its governing body (the International Federation of Competitive Eating) which maintains the world records for different food groups.

Major League Eating conducts about 80 eating competitions per year around the United States.  Sponsors of these events pay the costs associated with this rather unique promotion and cover the prize money being paid to the “professional” eaters.

The group is best known for providing the most qualified contestants for the annual Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Fourth of July competition at Coney Island.

The men’s and women’s winners each pocket a $10,000 first prize plus the coveted Mustard Belt.

Think of a professional wrestling title belt.

Second place finishers take home $5,000 in each division.

Friday’s annual Nathan’s hot dog eating event (available on ESPN2 at 11AM CDT) always starts with the popular (and very cheesy) contestant introductions by MLE’s founder George Shea.

How does someone qualify to enter the nation’s biggest hot dog eating contest?

There are several hot dog eating qualifying competitions which were held in the months leading up to the July 4th main event.

Hershey, PA, Washington, DC, Pleasanton, CA (San Francisco area), Kansas City, MO, Cleveland, OH, and Bristol, CT recently hosted regional events in May and June to determine the pool of hot dog eating contestants this Friday.

According to the Major League Eating website, contestants must be at least 18 years of age and sign a waiver indicating that they are aware of the potential dangers and risks associated with participating in one of these events.

The finalists are invited to New York City for the big Fourth of July finale.

These competitive gluttons will consume as many Nathan’s hot dogs and buns (though not necessarily at the same time) as possible over a 10 minute period.  A scorekeeper is assigned to each of the finalists to keep track and verify their total.

Water or other beverages may be consumed during the contest to assist in swallowing.  A penalty card may be assessed for sloppy eating or for any (ugh) regurgitation during the contest.

If the 10-minute contest ends in a tie, a “Sudden Death eat-off” will immediately follow.

Oh, my! Doesn’t that sound painful?

Meet current hot dog eating world record holder Joey Chestnut

Chestnut is Major League Eating’s equivalent of golf’s Jack Nicklaus + Tiger Woods in the world of professional eating.

His professional nickname is “Jaws”.

How appropriate!

The 41-year old Joey Chestnut holds 55 world records in various food groups and has won the Nathan’s Fourth of July contest an “incr-edible” 16 times.

His world record consumption of 76 hot dogs came during this event in 2023.

Each Nathan’s hot dog contains 155 calories and 14 grams of fat. 

An average hot dog bun is 140 calories and 2 grams of fat.

Joey Chestnut’s record hot dog eating performance meant 11,780 calories and 1,064 fat grams consumed (hot dogs only) plus 10,640 calories and 156 fat grams for the buns.

That massive total equals 22.420 calories including 1,220 fat grams – in just ten minutes! Most Americans are advised to that 2,000 calories per day is all we should need.

Chestnut’s training regimen consists of fasting for a period and then stretching his stomach with milk (usually goat milk).  He will get in eating “shape” by wolfing down 40 or more hot dogs at his home in the weeks leading up to the annual competition in New York.

Joey Chestnut (who is listed at 6’1” and 235 pounds) was an engineering major at San Jose State University.

He began eating “professionally” twenty years ago in 2005.

Chestnut was not allowed to compete in last year’s 2024 Nathan’s hot dog eating contest after he accepted a paid sponsorship from another company which just happens to make a plant-based hot dog product.

That didn’t go over very well with the title sponsor – whose hot dogs are made of the traditional variety.

There is good news in 2025! Joey Chestnut has been cleared to return and compete in Friday’s main event.

Have you heard about the Godfather of Major League Eating?

Japan’s legendary Takeru Kobayashi gained fame during the early 2000’s by dominating the Nathan’s Fourth of July hot dog eating contests.  He won the Nathan’s event six times during that period.

Kobayashi once had to withdraw from the Nathan’s Fourth of July contest back in 2007.

The promoters claimed he wasn’t able to compete due to (sorry) “Jaw-thritis!”

A young Joey Chestnut then arrived on the Major League Eating scene.  Chestnut had several classic battles with veteran hot dog eater Kobayahsi during a series of Fourth of July contests.

Those two hot dog consuming legends pushed each other to establish a series of new world records during some of their Fourth of July dog-to-dog battles.

Joey Chestnut would eventually “def-eat” Kobayahsi and pushed “The Godfather of Competitive Eating” into his Major League Eating retirement.

The now-retired Kobayashi (age 47) claims to be trying to design a healthier hot dog.

Good luck with that!

Don’t forget about Nathan’s hot dog women’s defending champion – Miki Sudo

This 10-time Nathan’s Fourth of July eating contest winner set a new women’s world record in 2024 by downing 51 hot dogs in 10 minutes.

Miki Sudo often competes against the men in other Major League Eating events around the country – especially when some type of a dessert or sweet is served for consumption.

Her world records include eating 2 oz. glazed donuts (87 in “ate” minutes), ice cream (16 ½ pints in just six minutes), steamed pork buns (39.5 in “ate” minutes), and cheese slices (348 in “ate” minutes).

The 39-year old Miki Sudo is 5’4” tall but weighs only 125 pounds. How does she do it?

Sudo enters this Friday’s Nathan’s hot dog eating contest in New York City as the unbeaten women’s champion with a perfect ten wins in her ten tries.

Frankly, who should be the “wiener” of this year’s Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating contest?

Las Vegas odds makers (yes, some people bet on these competitions) favor Joey Chestnut to win AND break his own world record of 76 hot dogs this Friday.

Long-time women’s champion Miki Sudo is such a heavy favorite that most wagering establishments decided against posting a betting line on the women’s competition.

The action starts Friday at 11AM CDT on ESPN2.  Do you have the stomach to watch this?

Joey Chestnut will have plenty of fans pulling for him to set another world record on July 4th.  My sources indicate that at least one of his relatives is planning to attend, too.

His “Auntie Acid” is expected to make her annual visit after the competition ends!

The post Hot Dog! Let’s Celebrate the Fourth of July! appeared first on SwampSwamiSports.com.