Edwin Amenta
  • December 26, 2025

  • Edwin Amenta, sociology, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Dec. 26, 2025

    • -----

It is a part of the fabric of Pittsburgh. ... But when the Terrible Towel is the subject, it works both ways. The 16x25-inch yellow terrycloth towel is so simple, yet so powerful, and on Saturday it turns 50 years old. And like anything that is entering middle age and has meant so much to so many, it has inspired others trying to capture its same magic. Edwin Amenta — a professor of sociology and political science at the University of California, Irvine, who has written about sports fandom — said the rally towel provides a unique dynamic at stadiums and arenas. “The visual aspect of it, I think is important,” he said. ”You see these towels all over the place, but you also see the white-out or the black-out game. “But the towel itself seems somewhat more motivating,” he added. ... Amenta said anything, whether it’s a towel or something like the Los Angeles Angels’ rally monkey, that helps whip the crowd into a frenzy is a benefit, even beyond the nebulous impact of motivating the home team on the field. He provided one example: “I think it helps sometimes also with the officiating of the game where the officials will be booed for calls that go against the home team and then they may react a little bit to sort of compensate. It’s one of those things that’s sort  of in the tool kit of the home team.”

For the full story, please visit https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2025/12/26/terrible-towel-myron-cope-steelers-rally-towels/stories/202512270003. 

 

Related News Items

Archive

Connect with us:

© UC Irvine School of Social Sciences – 3151 Social Sciences Plaza, Irvine, CA 92697-5100 – 949.824.2766