Odds are you won’t be going to a Super Bowl party this year—yet another tradition the pandemic has stripped from us. But if you’re planning to enjoy a pizza as the Kansas City Chiefs face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, you probably should order early, maybe even days in advance, to avoid the rush.
Pizza chains say this could be their busiest Super Bowl Sunday in history, as more people stay home. A survey by the National Retail Federation found that just 3% of people planning to watch the big game will do so at a restaurant or bar. And 72% say they have no party plans.
That means delivery and pickup is likely to see a surge on what is traditionally already one of the busiest days of the year.
Domino’s sells about 2 million pizzas on a normal Super Bowl Sunday, a 30% increase over a typical Sunday. Last year, the company said, it sold enough pizzas to stretch across 6,000 football fields.
“Football’s favorite Sunday is consistently one of Domino’s busiest delivery days of the year,” said Jenny Fouracre, Domino’s spokesperson, in a statement. “Domino’s stores across the country have prepared by staffing up, ordering extra ingredients, and practicing the art of precision pizza-making.”
The expected surge follows a banner year for pizza makers. Consumers, tired of cooking for themselves after months of stay-at-home orders, turned to comfort food like pizza last year, resulting in substantially strong sales.
This is often the time of year that pizza chains roll out new products, as well. Pizza Hut recently introduced a Detroit-style pizza, and Marco’s has rolled out a “build your own pizza bowls” product for people who want to skip the crust. Even 7-Eleven is hoping to see a bump, offering $1 large pizzas on Super Bowl Sunday when ordered via their app.
Pizza is not the only food in demand on Super Bowl Sunday. Another menu staple of many chains—chicken wings—is also expected to surge in demand. The National Chicken Council says Americans will devour 1.42 billion wings this Sunday, a 2% jump over last year.