Rally towel
Encyclopedia
A rally towel is a sports paraphernalia item and a type of towel
often used as a fan symbol used in American sports events. The prototype of the modern rally towel, created in 1975 by former Pittsburgh Steelers
radio broadcaster
Myron Cope
, was known as the Terrible Towel
. Since the Terrible Towels's debut, teams haved used similar gimmicks, mainly using white towels and giving them out to fans. The main time teams give rally towels is during league postseasons. Towels have gained much popularity as distractions to visiting players. Fans usually keep their towels and either keep using them at their home, take them to future games, or use them for other reasons. Teams that use rally towels include the NFL's Seattle Seahawks
and New York Jets
, the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins
and Dallas Stars
, the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers
and Oklahoma City Thunder
, and the MLB's Philadelphia Phillies
and Texas Rangers
.
recalled the event , "Nearing kickoff, the Steelers gathered in the tunnel for introductions, whereupon the crowd exploded-and suddenly, by my estimation, 30,000 Terrible Towels twirled from the fists of fans around the stadium!" The Steelers would win the game, and later win their second straight Super Bowl
win. That's where the first rally towels in history came from. That would also be the first rally towel in American football.
The first rally towels in baseball came from the Minnesota Twins
. The Homer Hanky
is a handkerchief printed in Twins logos given out to fans. The Homer Hanky first appeared during the Twins playoff run in 1987, when they won the World Series
. Since, the Twins have given out Homer Hankys to fans in every playoff run since 1987, in both the Metrodome and Target Field. Homer Hankys were given out also when the Twins won the 1991 World Series
.
, the San Francisco Giants
and the Texas Rangers
both had rally towels. The Giants had orange "rally rags", but only for Game 2, while the Rangers used red, white, and blue rally towels for Games 3, 4, and 5, all of the home games in Arlington. This was the first World Series that both teams had rally towels since the 2006 World Series
.
In baseball, the teams that use rally towels that are common to hand out besides the Twins are usually the Phillies, the Cardinals, the Tigers, and the Rockies. The Blue Jays hand out rally towels as part of their "Fan Fridays" promotion, inaugurated in 2010. The Reds, the Giants, and the Rangers came into the picture in 2010.
. Fans used them in the playoffs, including when LeBron James
returned to Quicken Loans Arena
as a member of the Miami Heat
. As for the Heat, rally towels are given during there playoff runs with the phrase "White Hot". Other teams include the Oklahoma City Thunder
and the Boston Celtics
. The 2011 NBA Champions Dallas Mavericks
gave out towels during their 1st round series against the Blazers, and in their Western Conference Finals series against the Thunder during their championship run in 2011. The Grizzles, Pacers, and 76ers also came in to use in 2011.
The NHL has many teams that use rally towels. The Penguins use them during "white-out" games in the playoffs. The Blackhawks used red towels for the majority of their 2009 playoff run and the 2010 playoffs that ended when they won the Cup. The Stars use them in the playoffs, especially when they won the Stanley Cup
in 1999. The Devils, Sharks, and Ducks also have rally towels. The first team that used rally towels in hockey was in 1982 by the Vancouver Canucks
. Canucks fans use the term Towel Power
to describe the waving of rally towels by their fans.
, rally towels were never used because of the popularity of scarves. The rally towel made a rare appearance in the 2010 MLS Playoffs, when Real Salt Lake
gave rally towels to fans during a semi-final match against FC Dallas
. The towels did not help the team, as FC Dallas won in the aggregate and would go all the way to the MLS Cup Final. They are also used in minor leagues as well.
College teams also occasionally use rally towels. TCU
gave rally towels to fans of the Horned Frogs in Pasadena, when TCU defeated the BCS and won the Rose Bowl over Wisconsin on January 1, 2011.
Towel
A towel is a piece of absorbent fabric or paper used for drying or wiping. It draws moisture through direct contact, often using a blotting or a rubbing motion. Common household textile towels are made from cotton, rayon, bamboo, nonwoven fibers or a few other materials.-Types of towels:* A bath...
often used as a fan symbol used in American sports events. The prototype of the modern rally towel, created in 1975 by former Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
radio broadcaster
Color commentator
A color commentator is a sports commentator who assists the play-by-play announcer, often by filling in any time when play is not in progress. The color analyst and main commentator will often exchange comments freely throughout the broadcast, when the play-by-play announcer is not describing the...
Myron Cope
Myron Cope
Myron Cope , born Myron Sidney Kopelman, was an American sports journalist, radio personality, and sportscaster who is best known for being "the voice of the Pittsburgh Steelers."...
, was known as the Terrible Towel
Terrible Towel
The Terrible Towel is a rally towel associated with the Pittsburgh Steelers, an American football team in the National Football League . Created in 1975 by then Steelers radio broadcaster Myron Cope, The Terrible Towel has spread in popularity; fans take their Towel to famous sites while on vacation...
. Since the Terrible Towels's debut, teams haved used similar gimmicks, mainly using white towels and giving them out to fans. The main time teams give rally towels is during league postseasons. Towels have gained much popularity as distractions to visiting players. Fans usually keep their towels and either keep using them at their home, take them to future games, or use them for other reasons. Teams that use rally towels include the NFL's Seattle Seahawks
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
and New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
, the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the first expansion teams during the league's original...
and Dallas Stars
Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team was founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minnesota North Stars, based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The...
, the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...
and Oklahoma City Thunder
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder are a professional basketball franchise based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ; their home court is at Chesapeake Energy Arena....
, and the MLB's Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
and Texas Rangers
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...
.
History
On December 27, 1975, in a game between the Baltimore Colts and the Pittsburgh Steelers, before kickoff, late Steelers radio broadcaster Myron CopeMyron Cope
Myron Cope , born Myron Sidney Kopelman, was an American sports journalist, radio personality, and sportscaster who is best known for being "the voice of the Pittsburgh Steelers."...
recalled the event , "Nearing kickoff, the Steelers gathered in the tunnel for introductions, whereupon the crowd exploded-and suddenly, by my estimation, 30,000 Terrible Towels twirled from the fists of fans around the stadium!" The Steelers would win the game, and later win their second straight Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
win. That's where the first rally towels in history came from. That would also be the first rally towel in American football.
The first rally towels in baseball came from the Minnesota Twins
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...
. The Homer Hanky
Homer Hanky
The Official Star Tribune Minnesota Twins Homer Hanky , is a handkerchief printed with a baseball-shaped logo during Minnesota Twins championship seasons...
is a handkerchief printed in Twins logos given out to fans. The Homer Hanky first appeared during the Twins playoff run in 1987, when they won the World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
. Since, the Twins have given out Homer Hankys to fans in every playoff run since 1987, in both the Metrodome and Target Field. Homer Hankys were given out also when the Twins won the 1991 World Series
1991 World Series
The 1991 World Series pitted the Minnesota Twins of the American League against the Atlanta Braves of the National League. The series was played from Saturday, October 19 to Sunday, October 27....
.
Present Day
Today, rally towels are seen in all four major American sports leagues (NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL). They have even been seen in the MLS. MLB has almost all teams use rally towels now, gaining more fame.Baseball
During the 2010 MLB Postseason, five of the eight teams in the playoffs had rally towels. Only the New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays, and Atlanta Braves did not have rally towels during the playoffs. The two teams in the 2010 World Series2010 World Series
The 2010 World Series was the 106th occurrence of Major League Baseball's championship series. The best-of-seven playoff, played between the American League champion Texas Rangers and the National League champion San Francisco Giants, began on Wednesday, , and ended on Monday, , with the Giants...
, the San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
and the Texas Rangers
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...
both had rally towels. The Giants had orange "rally rags", but only for Game 2, while the Rangers used red, white, and blue rally towels for Games 3, 4, and 5, all of the home games in Arlington. This was the first World Series that both teams had rally towels since the 2006 World Series
2006 World Series
The 2006 World Series, the 102nd edition of Major League Baseball's championship series, began on October 21 and ended on October 27, and matched the American League champion Detroit Tigers against the National League champion St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals won the Series in five games, taking...
.
In baseball, the teams that use rally towels that are common to hand out besides the Twins are usually the Phillies, the Cardinals, the Tigers, and the Rockies. The Blue Jays hand out rally towels as part of their "Fan Fridays" promotion, inaugurated in 2010. The Reds, the Giants, and the Rangers came into the picture in 2010.
Football
As for the NFL, the Seattle Seahawks use rally towels as part of their 12th man saga. In 2010, 12th man rally towels were given out, and helped the Seahawks win the NFC West title over the Rams in the final game of the season, and played a huge part in the Seahawks huge playoff upset over the defending Super Bowl champion Saints. The Jets, Eagles, Vikings, Cowboys, and Bears also hand out rally towels in the playoffs.Basketball
Few NBA teams have rally towels. The most significant team with towels is the Cleveland CavaliersCleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...
. Fans used them in the playoffs, including when LeBron James
LeBron James
LeBron Raymone James is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association . Nicknamed "King James", he was a three-time "Mr. Basketball" of Ohio in high school, and was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar while a...
returned to Quicken Loans Arena
Quicken Loans Arena
Quicken Loans Arena , is a multi-purpose arena, in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States....
as a member of the Miami Heat
Miami Heat
The Miami Heat is a professional basketball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. The team is a member of the Southeast Division in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . They play their home games at American Airlines Arena in Downtown Miami...
. As for the Heat, rally towels are given during there playoff runs with the phrase "White Hot". Other teams include the Oklahoma City Thunder
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder are a professional basketball franchise based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ; their home court is at Chesapeake Energy Arena....
and the Boston Celtics
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are a National Basketball Association team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1946, the team is currently owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which...
. The 2011 NBA Champions Dallas Mavericks
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
gave out towels during their 1st round series against the Blazers, and in their Western Conference Finals series against the Thunder during their championship run in 2011. The Grizzles, Pacers, and 76ers also came in to use in 2011.
Hockey
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
in 1999. The Devils, Sharks, and Ducks also have rally towels. The first team that used rally towels in hockey was in 1982 by the Vancouver Canucks
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, :British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Canucks play their home games at Rogers Arena, formerly known as General Motors Place,...
. Canucks fans use the term Towel Power
Towel Power
Towel Power is a term used by the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League to describe the waving of rally towels by their fans. The tradition started in the 1982 Western Conference Finals where Vancouver played the Chicago Blackhawks...
to describe the waving of rally towels by their fans.
Other
In other sports, rally towels are rarely used. In the MLSMajor League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
, rally towels were never used because of the popularity of scarves. The rally towel made a rare appearance in the 2010 MLS Playoffs, when Real Salt Lake
Real Salt Lake
Real Salt Lake is an American professional soccer club based in Sandy, Utah, a suburb of Salt Lake City. The team competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. They currently play their home games at Rio Tinto Stadium. Real Salt Lake won...
gave rally towels to fans during a semi-final match against FC Dallas
FC Dallas
FC Dallas is an American professional soccer club based in the Dallas suburb of Frisco, Texas which competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States of America and Canada...
. The towels did not help the team, as FC Dallas won in the aggregate and would go all the way to the MLS Cup Final. They are also used in minor leagues as well.
College teams also occasionally use rally towels. TCU
Texas Christian University
Texas Christian University is a private, coeducational university located in Fort Worth, Texas, United States and founded in 1873. TCU is affiliated with, but not governed by, the Disciples of Christ...
gave rally towels to fans of the Horned Frogs in Pasadena, when TCU defeated the BCS and won the Rose Bowl over Wisconsin on January 1, 2011.