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.[1] Since the Terrible Towels's debut, teams haved used similar gimmicks, mainly using white towels and giving them out to fans.[2] 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 Vancouver Canucks, Pittsburgh Penguins and Dallas Stars, the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder, and the MLB's Philadelphia Phillies and Texas Rangers.
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On December 27, 1975, in a game between the Baltimore Colts and the Pittsburgh Steelers, before kickoff, late Steelers radio broadcaster Myron Cope 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.
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.
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 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.
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.
Few NBA teams have rally towels. The most significant team with towels is the Cleveland Cavaliers. 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.
In other sports, rally towels are rarely used. In the MLS, 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. Texas A&M began using "12th Man" Towels in 1985 with the 12th Man kickoff team to help boost student support at Kyle Field. 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.