By Paige Albright
Boston University News Service
With the winter holiday season in full swing, the classics have returned to homes and TVs across America to get into the holiday spirit. However for sports fans, another holiday staple has returned: the annual holiday sporting matchups.
Football and Thanksgiving are nearly synonymous for some, with college and professional teams holding games coinciding with the holiday for decades. The NFL holds staple match-ups with the winner taking home a roasted turkey as a prize.
Similar match-ups happen all across sports, with annual collegiate match-ups such as the rivalry Big Ten game of the University of Iowa versus the University of Nebraska-Lincoln the day after Thanksgiving. Fans, without fail, brave the cold of the Midwest to cheer on the yearly contest.
The Boston University Men’s Hockey Team returned to one of college hockey’s best traditions, the Friendship Four Tournament in Belfast, Ireland, the only college hockey contest hosted outside of the U.S. The Terriers beat Merrimack in the semifinals and then went on to defeat Notre Dame in the championship to win the Belpot Trophy.
The first Women’s Friendship Four will take place in 2026, with the Boston University Women’s Hockey Team set to participate in the inaugural event.
The NBA largely dominates Christmas. Since 1947, when the NBA was under its previous name, the Basketball Association of America (BAA), the league has held games on Christmas Day. This year, there will be five matchups taking place for fans to watch.
Boxing Day is a bank Holiday in the U.K. held on the workday following the Dec. 25. While society has moved away from the origins of the holiday, the festivities are still celebrated with fan-favored soccer matchups. Consequently, as Boxing Day is a primarily European holiday, most European soccer leagues return to play on the holiday.
As people all across the globe celebrate the New Year, sports fans are cheering on their teams who are participating in sporting traditions from leagues and cultures all over, with College Football Bowl games, NFL matchups and NHL specials.
The NHL holds its yearly Winter Classic on New Year’s Day. The game is always held outside, converting sites such as Fenway Park or Wrigley Field into an ice rink. Teams chosen to play in the event will sport retro jerseys for the game, continuing the theme of a “blast from the past.”
College football bowl games such as the historic Rose Bowl, Peach Bowl and Sugar Bowl take place on New Year’s Day, with the Fiesta Bowl held on New Year’s Eve. These specific bowl games are commonly match-ups leading to the NCAA Football Championship, with top-finishing teams looking to win and continue their postseason.
Bowl games draw fans to travel across the country to support their teams, and the revenue that comes with participating in a bowl game creates an even greater incentive to win six games during the regular season to become bowl eligible.
Smaller sporting events like the Saint Sylvestre Grand Prix, which is native to the Swiss Alps, are less popularized but still ingrained into the celebrations of the New Year. Other events like the Leopardstown Christmas Festival in Dublin, Ireland host cultural sporting events where locals and visitors compete for town glory.
