Happy National Hot Dog Day. In 2021, University of Michigan of researchers posted a study claiming that eating a hot dog would shorten the lifespan of its consumer by 36 minutes. Using that figure, the following table list the amount of lifespan truncation for competitive eaters from the combined totals of hot dog events in the eatfeats database. The statistics inclunde MLE contests, non-MLE competitions and exhibitions. The first column is the number of hot dog events for a given competitor.

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A list of the top first-time results for Nathan’s Famous hot dog eating contests follows. Scott Watkins set the record for a qualifier debut on July 4. All the top 6 debuts are by non-Americans.

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All Nathan’s Famous hot dog results of 30 or more by women follows:

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All Nathan’s Famous hot dog results of 50 or more follows:
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A listing of all Nathan’s Famous hot dog eating contest personal bests for females only of 10 hot dogs or greater follows:
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A listing of all Nathan’s Famous hot dog eating contest personal bests 10 hot dogs or greater follows:
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Here is a list of all winners of a hot dog eating contest held at Nathan’s Famous in Coney Island in the database. Before 1980, competitions were held on various days throughout the summer. The first contest to receive news coverage was held on June 30, 1967 to commemorate the centennial of the hot dog. Walter Paul reportedly won that event with a reported total of 127 hot dogs in an hour.
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update June 29 A press release announces that Jeremy Schapp, Rich Shea and Marion Crowder will be the announcers. This will be the first eating contest to be televised live on a national over-the-air network since the 2008 Collegiate Nationals, won by
Furious Pete, was broadcast by CBS.

Here is the current broadcast schedule for Nathan/s Famous hot dog eating contest on July 4. The men’s contest will be on ESPN2 and simulcast on ABC starting at 12:30 as part of its “Disney Celebrates America” marathon. The women’s contest will be streaming only. Joey Chestnut and Miki Sudo will have individual cameras.

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One June 5, the official White House X account posted a picture of President Trump watching a New York Knicks game from courtside seats. His seatmate is believed to be Howard Lorber, his longtime friend and CEO of Nathan’s Famous. The picture was taken at a 2007 game against the Los Angeles Lakes and comes from a NY Magazine article which claims that Lorber was Trump’s most common companion at Knicks games. The game Trump attended on June 8 was the only game lost by the Knicks in a 4-1 NBA Championship Series win.

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The takeover of Nathan’s Famous by its meatpacker and distributor, Chinese-owned Smithfield Foods, was announced in January and expected to be completed in the first half of 2026. Various issues have postponed the closing to the second half of the year.

Completion of the transaction remains contingent upon meeting several conditions specified in the Merger Agreement. These include securing approval from the holders of a majority of Nathan’s outstanding stock, obtaining clearance from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), and fulfilling other closing requirements. However, given the impact of the partial government shutdown on statutory deadlines for CFIUS’s review process, our anticipated closing timeline has shifted, and we now expect the transaction to close in the second half of 2026.

update Jun 13 The Trump Administration has criticized foreign control of the American meat industry, but they have not expressed any criticism of the Nathan’s Famous / Smithfield Foods merger. One reason for the lack of opposition to the deal might be the longtime friendship between Trump and Nathan’s Famous CEO Howard Lorber, who has hosted fundraisers for the president.

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The July 4 schedule for ESPN is now available. The main channel will observe America250 by broadcasting British tennis while the men’s Nathan’s Famous hot dog eating contest is relegated to ESPN2 and the women’s division is streaming-only. The men’s contest will be rerun on ESPN2 at 4pm Eastern and the documentary “The Good, the Bat, The Hungry” will be shown at 5pm.

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Here is the number of Nathan’s Famous hot dog qualifiers in the database since 2002 by contest year. The list does not include non hot dog competitions like the 2005 UK sausage eating contest that awarded a finals spot.

A list of all the qualifiers follows after the jump
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