New Year’s Eve is, arguably, defined by champagne toasts, midnight kisses, and of course, the ball drop. While viewers from across the globe tuned in to watch the iconic ball drop in Times Square on New Year’s Eve, another American city welcomed 2025 by dropping a very different object: a giant Taco Bell taco. On Wednesday, January 1, Instagram user @Snackolator posted a video of Tucson, Arizona’s annual Taco Bell taco drop, aptly named the “Taco Touchdown,” and fans are already planning their trips for next year.
In the clip, a giant taco emblazoned with the Taco Bell logo was lowered to the ground via a massive crane as fireworks exploded in the background. The annual taco drop, which is hosted by the Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl, began in 2014 and now attracts thousands of spectators, according to KGUN-TV,
Taco Bell enthusiasts immediately flooded @snackolator’s comments with a mix of awe, FOMO, and pride, including Instagram user @justabritt2much, who wrote “this makes me feel so patriotic.”
User @aracnomother pointed out a major missed opportunity for the Taco Bell marketing team, commenting, “But they don’t play the bell when it lands?!”
Some fans expressed an urgent need for travel plans for the 2026 celebration. User @muhlyssa asked “What is the closest hotel to where I’m clearly going to be next year” and @sugarfree_101 joked, “Imma meet you there.”
According to the Arizona Bowl VP of Marketing Ben Chulick, TBell enthusiasts come from across the country to witness the Taco Touchdown after seeing it on TikTok. This year, viewers came from as far as Florida and New Orleans to witness the NYE tradition.
Instagram user @annatrotsenko, a Tucson local, commented on @snackolator’s original post, saying that the Taco Touchdown is “so fun! Definitely worth the trip.” Much to the dismay of other users, though, she reported that “Sadly there [were] no tacos or Taco Bell merch being given out because that would’ve [been] so much cooler.”
Although there were no free tacos, crunchwraps, or TBell merch to be had, the city of Tucson did offer food trucks, a “gin and juice garden” (in classic Snoop Dogg fashion) and beer stations on the premises to fuel everyone for the countdown to Taco Touchdown. The party, which was free for all ages, also included a three-hour silent disco, a new addition to the festivities beginning in 2021.
When the clock struck midnight, the giant illuminated taco was lowered from the sky to ring in 2025, and fireworks were set off.
Believe it or not, the Tucson Taco Bell taco was not the only NYE food drop to ring in 2025. The University of Mount Olive Athletics Department dropped a giant pickle via crane on its North Carolina campus.
𝗔 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿’𝘀 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗻𝗼 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿! 🎆
— UMO Trojans (@UMOAthletics) January 1, 2025
🥒 𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗞𝗟𝗘 𝗗𝗥𝗢𝗣 𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗢 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 pic.twitter.com/Yyj6BgKy6o
In Florida, Plant City dropped a 6-foot tall light up strawberry, and Sarasota celebrated with the 25th annual Pineapple Drop for a fruity finish to 2024.
Meanwhile, in Hackettstown, New Jersey, midnight meant a giant M&M drop; and in Boise, Idahoans ring in the new year with an annual spud-tacular potato drop. There’s also a 400-pound Peep that drops in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and a Sartori cheese drop in Plymouth, Wisconsin.
Here’s to seeing what other foods drop out of the sky to celebrate 2026.