4 tips for hosting an epic summer games watch party

(BPT) - All eyes are on Japan this summer as the world’s best athletes come together to compete in the most anticipated sporting event of 2021. Aside from the competition itself, these games are also the perfect time to celebrate cultures and cuisines from across the globe. So why not create a fun and meaningful watch party to honor participating countries with your family and friends?

From the opening ceremony to the most watched events, here are a few tips for hosting a medal-worthy watch party.

Serve up some global cuisines and cocktails

Treat your guests to tasty international party snacks, finger foods and drinks while cheering on the top teams from around the world.

Choose a few countries to highlight by serving up their signature cuisines, such as fish and chips to represent the UK or pelmeni to represent Russia. Pair your dishes with some creative cocktails — with or without alcohol — that incorporate a country’s flag colors or locally native fruits, juices and spirits. There are also plenty of global beers and wines to pair with dishes as well.

And to celebrate this year’s host country, create a true Japanese-inspired crowd-pleaser like the SPAM(R) Classic Musubi Crunchy Roll. The flavor of the SPAM(R) Classic mixed with the crunch of the fried panko breadcrumbs and sriracha mayonnaise will definitely earn you a gold medal from your guests.

Create colorful competition with your decorations

Use the colors of the summer games — blue, yellow, black, green and red — for streamers, balloons and table decorations to get in the spirit. Get disposable plates in these five colors and cut out the centers to create the iconic rings to put on display.

Choose country flags like the U.S., Japan and others that represent your family’s heritage, places you've visited or teams you admire, and recreate the flags on poster board. Expand the fun by having your guests create some flags and share who they are rooting for and why.

Plan your own summer games

Create games from silly to serious that both kids and adults can play to earn homemade medals. Include traditional games like relay or egg-and-spoon races, swimming and bike competitions, or beanbag-toss contests.

And for those who just want to focus on the real summer games, make bingo cards for each guest to fill out while watching. The cards can include items like medal counts from different countries, the number of athletes competing per country or individual athletes going for the gold. Find multicultural themed prizes to give out to the winners.

Go multilingual

Use your music streaming service to play national anthems, traditional songs or popular musicians from various countries before and after events. Do an internet search to learn how to say phrases like "Go team!" in different languages and incorporate the phrase when cheering on or celebrating teams.

Learning about and celebrating other cultures is what makes these summer games even more fun and fascinating. Do your research, get creative and prepare to party!

SPAM^® Classic Musubi Crunchy Roll

4 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
1 (12-ounce) can SPAM^® Classic cut into 8 slices
3 cups cooked white sushi rice
4 sheets nori, cut in half
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups panko
Vegetable oil
3/4 cup Unagi sushi sauce
2 teaspoons sesame seed
1 cup shrimp chips, crushed
1/4 cup chopped green onion

Directions

• In small bowl, combine soy sauce and sugar.
• In large skillet over medium-high heat, cook SPAM^® Classic slices 3-5 minutes or until browned. Add soy sauce sugar mixture, cook 1-2 minutes or until slices are glazed. Remove from skillet.
• Place 1/3 cup rice into musubi press, or plastic wrap lined SPAM^® Classic can and press down. Remove from press on top of halved nori sheet. Wrap nori around musubi, moistening edge of nori to adhere together. Repeat to make 8.
• Place eggs and breadcrumbs in separate shallow dishes. Dip and roll each musubi in egg, then panko.
• In large skillet over medium-high heat, heat 1 inch vegetable oil. Fry musubi in oil, turning to fry each side 3-5 minutes or until golden brown.
• Slice each musubi into 4 slices. Drizzle with sriracha mayonnaise, Unagi, sesame seeds, shrimp chips and green onions.

Check out more internationally inspired recipes for your watch party at SPAM.com/recipes.