After 141 Years, Baseball Finally Chooses an Official Hot Dog – Bloomberg

Even vegetarians know that hot dogs are the official food of baseball. And yet, while Major League Baseball has a pizza sponsorship and a taco deal, it has never had an official hot dog.

Until now. MLB announced today that Nathan’s Famous Inc., the fast-food chain that started as a Coney Island stand in 1916, will be the league’s official hot dog, putting the wiener alongside other sponsorship categories including lawn care, cloud storage and insurance.

“A game doesn’t feel complete without enjoying a hot dog,” Wayne Norbitz, a Nathan’s executive board member, said in a statement.

Neither MLB nor Nathan’s disclosed financial terms of the agreement, which primarily gives Nathan’s the right to use baseball’s trademarks in its advertising. Individual stadiums and teams have their own hot dog partnerships. Vienna Beef, for example, sponsors Chicago’s Cubs and White Sox. Nathan’s is already the official hot dog of the Marlins, Mets, Yankees and Cardinals.

The deal also makes Nathan’s a supporter of the league’s “Play Ball” initiative, which promotes participation in baseball and softball.