Philadelphia Eagles fans took part in their longstanding tradition of pole climbing in celebration of their win against the Kansas City Chiefs, find out more about it below
Residents of Philadelphia have a longstanding tradition of pole climbing whenever they win any kind of major sports event.
Philadelphia Eagles fans greased pole climbing celebration tradition origin, history and story explained
No amount of grease can stop this fan from climbing up a pole on Broad Street. Eagles fans flood the streets of Philadelphia now that the Birds are going to the Super Bowl! pic.twitter.com/nUKP4YWoW4
— CBS Philadelphia (@CBSPhiladelphia) January 27, 2025
Tyler Sabapathy, 18, @TempleUniv student has died from injuries in fall from pole he climbed at 15th & Market Streets Sunday night during the Eagles celebrations. pic.twitter.com/2x6Vw0ghk5
— Steve Keeley (@KeeleyFox29) January 29, 2025
Following the recent Super Bowl LIX victory against the Kansas City Chiefs, many Philadelphia fans attempted to climb light poles around the city.
Interestingly, the sports celebrations themselves started well before professional football even became popular.
Pole Climbing origins
According to reports, Philadelphia residents started climbing poles as a form of celebration ever since the first annual Italian Market Festival became a traditional part of city life back in the 1960s. Back then, teams at the festival battled against other teams to climb a 30-foot lard-coated pole. The winners would receive meat products and present cards as prizes. The practice originally started in Mediterranean cultural areas like Italy and Malta throughout history.
According to Bryant Simon, who is a history professor at Temple University, the pole climbing phenomenon mainly grew in popularity during the Phillies’ World Series appearances in 2008-09.
The “grease the poles” phenomenon
Besides the pole climbing, another common phrase associated with the celebrations is the “grease the poles” phenomenon. The word gained permanent status in the Philadelphia sports community after the Eagles won the Super Bowl 2018 title. During that year, the city officials reportedly took preventative measures before the game by applying oils to poles and traffic signals in order to prevent fans from scaling these structures. The city reportedly deployed Crisco and hydraulic fluid all over the city structures in order to prevent fans from climbing.
Aside from greasing the poles to prevent fans from climbing, it also serves as a safety precaution to protects them from harm. In some situations, safety becomes a major issue because it can become hard for emergency response to react quickly due to big crowds. Interestingly, some cities often apply lubricants to poles in the event that Philadelphia sports fans will climb after their victories.
Pole climbing as a form of celebration
Subsequently, pole climbing started out as a form of celebration, and it has now become a tradition strongly associated with Philadelphia sports fans. The activity has become a symbol of community and city passion. According to Rhys Hoskins, who was the first baseman for the Phillies:
It’s just how this city is. It’s a beautiful thing, in my eyes. That means a lot of good stuff is happening in this city.”
Meanwhile, Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos also added:
It is kind of on par for the city of Philadelphia, right? When they get excited about something, all bets are off.”