These Olympic Watch Party Ideas Will Make Your Gathering One to Remember
If you’ve set out to host an Olympics watch party this year then you’ve set a big goal for yourself! After all, the Olympics is a major event that only comes around once every two years.
As the winter Olympics is up next, we’ll talk about putting together a winter Olympics viewing party. Yet many of these principles would work just as well for a summer Olympics viewing party.
Choose Your Time
Scheduling is probably everyone’s biggest party hurdle. There are a couple of ways to do it.
The first way is just by targeting the opening ceremony and a handful of events on the first day of the 2.5 week Olympics competition. Choose this date if you want to get everyone pumped about the rest of the events. You might keep the excitement going throughout the event by setting up a temporary Discord server or Slack channel where you can chatter about other events after the party is over.
Another way is to focus on a specific event that everyone loves. Figure skating is a great one because those competitions are such fun visually, but you can choose any event that excites your partygoers.
Of course, it might be a matter of convenience. You can use the WhenIsGood tool at WhenIsGood.net to find a time that works for most of your guest list.
Decorate Like Crazy for Your Olympic Viewing Party
Decoration is the best way to get all your guests into the spirit of the Olympic events!
Here are a few ideas.
Flags
Olympic flags and national flags can really get people in the mood. You can get tiny hanging flags on a line or flags that you can group in vases for centerpieces. Toothpicks with flags on them are great to place in certain finger foods.
Sporty Decorations
If you’re theming your party around a specific event then you can often find decorations that celebrate that event. Hanging decorations, cut-outs that offer a stick figure of someone skiing or skating, or other decorations can create a specific atmosphere.
Pom Poms
Winter sports may not traditionally come along with cheerleaders, but if you’re cheering on the USA Hockey Team you might want to capture some of that spirit. Pom Poms are also festive and fun!
Olympic Torches
You can create torches out of vases and red, yellow, and orange tissue paper. You can also get torch cut-outs to put on the wall.
Make it Interactive
You can just have everyone settle in front of the television with a passel of snacks. That’s a perfectly valid way to host a winter Olympics watch party.
Yet if you want your party to be a bit more memorable, it’s always fun to add some interactive elements. Since the Olympics are the main event you don’t want to do anything that will distract, so incorporate some games into the watch party.
One way is by filling out some score cards. You can have your guests raise their cards and compare them to the judges’ scores. They get a point every time they make an accurate prediction. Give out gold, silver, and bronze medals to the winners.
If you know the event very well and don’t have any beliefs against gambling then you could also set up a friendly, small scale Olympics betting pool. There are a few printable examples online, or you can make up your own. Nobody minds winning a little lunch money!
Theme Up the Food
Make cookies in the shape of rings and then use colored sugar to turn them into the Olympic rings. Theme plates after the 5 colors of the Olympics. Create ‘torch’ displays with long glasses and pretzels.
Your creativity is the only limit. Many of the game day foods that people use at the Super Bowl or other watch parties are great for an Olympics watch party, too.
How do you celebrate the Olympics at home?
Once the party is over there will typically be a lot more Olympics to watch! Keep it fun by snacking on a few of those leftover party cupcakes every now and then, or make certain events into family fun nights. That Discord or Slack channel will sure come in handy too. Or host a virtual watch party for family members and friends who couldn’t be at your physical one. It’s a great way to get a gold medal in event planning!
Need supplies for your Olympics watch party? Head on down to Paper Plus at 1629 San Pablo Ave, Berkeley, CA to get all the flags, decorations, and other supplies that you could possibly need.
