Friendsgiving drinking games for the table and the couch
Friendsgiving games work best at the table you already sit at: a thankful hot seat (say what you're thankful for or sip), Most Likely To about the group's year, a football drinking game for the afternoon match, and a gravy rule that runs through dinner. Keep them to sips: there's a lot of food, and a lot of night left.
Quick picks
| Game | You need | When |
|---|---|---|
| Thankful hot seat | Nothing | At the table |
| The gravy rule | Nothing | All through dinner |
| Football drinking game | The match on TV | The afternoon |
| Friendsgiving Most Likely To | Nothing | Dessert |
| Leftovers Never Have I Ever | Nothing | After dinner |
| Categories, holiday edition | Nothing | Anytime |
| Pie bingo | Printed cards | All evening |
| Wrecked (app) | One phone | The couch, after dinner |
1. Thankful hot seat
Go round the table. Each person in turn gets a question from the group (“what are you most thankful for this year?”, “who here would you call at 3am?”, “best thing that happened to you this year?”). Answer properly, or sip. The questions get better as the evening goes on. More in our hot seat questions.
2. The gravy rule
One rule, the whole meal: anyone who asks for something to be passed has to say “please pass the gravy” first, whatever they want. Forget, and sip. Add one rule per course: no saying “turkey”, no pointing, left hand only.
3. Football drinking game
For the afternoon match. Pick four or five rules before kick-off and sip when they happen:
- A touchdown (fans of the scoring team hand out a sip instead)
- A flag is thrown
- A replay review
- The camera finds a fan in a costume
- A commentator says “Thanksgiving tradition”
Pick things that happen a few times a game, not every play.
4. Friendsgiving Most Likely To
Point on three; most votes sips:
- Who is most likely to fall asleep on the couch first?
- Who is most likely to have brought a store-bought dish and said it was homemade?
- Who is most likely to host next year?
- Who is most likely to take the most leftovers home?
- Who is most likely to start a debate about pie?
- Who is most likely to still be here tomorrow morning?
More in most likely to questions.
5. Leftovers Never Have I Ever
The classic, with a holiday round: never have I ever burned a holiday meal, pretended to like a gift, re-gifted something, hidden from a relative, eaten dessert before dinner. Then switch to never have I ever questions from the Wrecked deck.
6. Categories, holiday edition
Name a category, go round the table; the first to blank or repeat sips. Holiday categories: side dishes, pies, things you’re thankful for, holiday films, words that rhyme with “stuffing”.
7. Pie bingo
Print bingo cards with things that happen every year: “someone brings the same dish as someone else”, “the turkey is late”, “someone falls asleep”, “a debate about politics starts and stops”. First line wins; the others sip. Make the cards on our drinking bingo page.
8. Let an app run the couch
After dinner, when nobody wants to move, Wrecked runs a whole game from one phone: one person reads the cards out loud, the app picks who drinks and keeps track, and every five cards a mid-game event hits the room. It has no Thanksgiving mode, but it’s ideal for 2 to 16 people on a full stomach.
Keep it a good night
Long meal, long evening: pour small, alternate with water, and keep soft drinks on the table for anyone who wants them. Plan rides home before dessert. Our party drink calculator helps with the shopping, and our responsible drinking page has a few more tips. Next up: Christmas drinking games.
Questions people ask
What games do you play at Friendsgiving?
Table games that need nothing: a thankful hot seat, Most Likely To, Never Have I Ever and Categories. For the afternoon, a drinking game for the football. After dinner, a card game or a phone game everyone can join from the couch.
What is a Thanksgiving football drinking game?
Pick four or five things that happen a few times a game (a touchdown, a flag, a replay review, a coach's challenge) and sip when they do. Fans of the team that scores can hand out a sip.
Are these games good for a family Thanksgiving?
Most of them, yes: the hot seat, the gravy rule and Categories work with soft drinks just as well. Check your crowd before Never Have I Ever.
How much drink do I need for Friendsgiving?
It depends on guests and hours. Our party drink calculator works it out, with soft drinks and water included.
Who's gettingwrecked tonight?
Wrecked turns all of this into one game on one phone: 1,800+ cards, rules that stack, chaos every 5 cards and a personal roast for everyone at the end.
