What really matters at a Super Bowl party? Food, football and friends! Yes, it’s great to decorate for the festivities, but your guests care more about good food (the greasier and cheesier the better), watching the game and the fun they are going to have with each other.

Put your focus on these things and leave the rest behind.

Here are some fun tips to make your party the best in town.

Have fun

Provide everyone with yellow penalty flags and adhesive football eye black upon arrival.  They will most likely be wearing their favorite football jersey, so providing your guests with added props will make cheering and booing during the game more fun for everyone. 

Build-your-own food bar

Everybody loves a build-your-own food bar! Let your guests choose their favorites – build-your-own snack mix bar, nacho bar, potato bar, taco bar and/or dessert bar.  It’s easy for you and fun for your guests to be able to customize their meal to their own tastes.  

Spread out the goodies

Whatever your menu, be sure to make things accessible. Keeping coolers filled with ice, pop and beer within easy reach is nice for guests, plus it helps prevent bottlenecks from happening in tight areas near the kitchen.  Scatter food around the house on little folding tables or T.V. trays for easy access.  This also helps keep YOU out of the kitchen and able to enjoy the shindig, too. 

Make it a potluck

Feeding a bunch of folks can quickly get expensive. Besides that, it’s a ton of work when the host has to prepare all the food him or herself. Make your party a potluck – this is completely acceptable and most guests ENJOY bringing a dish.  Have your peeps sign up for what they’d like to bring, then ask them if they can transport it in a slow cooker. Be sure you’ve got plenty of power strips around to accommodate all the electricity needed.

Guess the score

If you want to opt out of a football betting pool, how about a fun game instead? As your guests arrive, ask each one to predict the winner’s final score.  Write their name and score guess on their designated beer cup or koozie.  Whoever gets closest to the winning score wins!  Don’t forget to provide a “special” prize for the winner. 

Make some art

It’s always fun to have something for guests to doodle on throughout the game.  Purchase some chalkboard contact paper and use it as your game day table runner.  Draw yard lines on it with chalk and a ruler, then leave out the chalk (or use white paint markers) so your guests can plot their game plays.

Share the cost

Need help with beer money?  Here’s an idea:  sell tickets to your party at the door so you can collect the cash up front, before your celebration begins.  Let your guests know about this ahead of time by stating it on your invitation.  They will likely appreciate this since it makes it easy – all they have to do is show up, pay and enjoy a few cold brews. Once you set up your beer stations, cut and tape your empty drink boxes to the tops of the coolers to let guests know what’s inside without having to open the cooler to see.  To save some extra cash – prepare ahead of time by freezing individual water bottles to use them as ice packs in your coolers. Score!