The Travel Trend Blending Sports Fandom and Custom Spirits

Shared sports as an instant connection

A shared love of sport can make friends out of strangers, especially when alcohol is involved. Photo: Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock

It’s no secret that a shared love of sport can build an instant connection. A stranger in an airport wearing your team’s jersey can be the spark that starts a conversation. Soon, you’ll be talking like you’ve known each other for years because of that one common thread.

Licensed therapist Krista Walker explains the science behind these connections. “As humans, we are wired to seek belonging with others. It’s a way to signal group identity, and acts as a social cue,” she says. For some, finding that sense of belonging can help create a sense of comfort and connection — something that can feel like it’s missing while on the road.

More and more, alcohol brands are leaning into that same spirit of connection between fans, athletes, and countries through fan-focused labels and celebrity partnerships. Watching sports and sharing drinks have long gone hand in hand, and linking those sips and clinks to beloved sports icons takes the experience beyond mixing a drink or watching a game. It knits those moments together into something more personal and creates bottles that double as memorabilia.

You’re unlikely to spot these fan-driven labels lined up in a big-box liquor store alongside Bacardi and Tanqueray, and that scarcity is part of the appeal. These small-batch, commemorative releases are designed to be discovered as part of the travel experience, often in unlikely places — such as Aruba.

The story behind Miggy XO

A promotional photo for the limited-edition Miggy XO. Photo: Bodegas Papiemento

I’m not typically a rum drinker, but Aruba has that rum-drink energy, and Radisson Blu Aruba had an on-site rum and chocolate tasting experience in partnership with nearby Bodegas Papiamento distillery. Tasting chocolate with the rum really highlighted the rum’s flavors, and was a memorable activity that went beyond the stereotypical “drink rum punch by the pool” type of afternoon. In fact, tasting the rums at the resort is what made us want to visit the actual distillery.

I learned that Franz Sydow, owner, director, and founder of Bodegas Papiamento is a Detroit Tigers baseball fan. He created MIGGY XO, a smooth rum blend, in honor of Cabrera’s Triple Crown. It’s sold only in person at the bodega, though other varieties of its rum can be purchased online.

Sydow describes MIGGY XO as a “very special rum,” and anticipates the commemorative set being highly collectible when it comes time for Cabrera to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. (He’s slated to be on the ballot in 2029.) The set comes with a bat-shaped decanter and four glasses etched with Cabrera’s records for hits, RBIs, home runs, and doubles. The real-life Miggy knows about the rum and signed off on allowing the distillery to use his name, but they’re not aware of whether he’s tried it or not. After giving it a sip, I hope he has.

Although I thought MIGGY XO was a love letter to an iconic player, with the “XO” meaning kisses and hugs, Sydow corrected me. “The XO means ‘extra old,’ as the rum is a 20-year-old rum,” he says. “We produced 1,000 bottles and the response has been amazing.” He even referred to the collector’s edition rum as a “home rum,” a clever play on words.

Interestingly, Detroit sports fandom alcohol brands don’t stop with Miggy. Craft spirits company BOTLD has a Grit City Spirits line in partnership with the Detroit Lions that includes both a bourbon and a vodka, and Valentine Distilling has created a small-batch orange-infused vodka (Lionsblood Orange), in partnership with former Lions wide receiver Nate Burleson. It’s fandom in a bottle (or a can).

The mash-up of sports fandom, beverages, and travel is a growing trend

WWE Hall of Famer Brett Hart at a promotional event for Romero Distilling. Photo: Romero Distilling

Athletes using their name to promote alcohol brands is becoming more common, though it’s usually seen with retired players, like former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman’s EIGHT Elite Light Beer. According to Aikman’s PR team, it was named in honor of his jersey number and born out of a passion project to create a clean-drinking beer brewed without additives or sweeteners. EIGHT scored a recent TV touchdown, you might say, when the beer was mentioned in the popular Paramount+ series Landman.

According to industry experts, it’s the wave of the future for what fans want. “We started working with a marketing company in 2019,” says Romero Distilling Company co-founder Tomas Romero. “And the idea of having a celebrity endorse our brand came up.”

Enter WWE Hall of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart, raised in the brand’s hometown of Calgary, Alberta. Though Hart’s collaboration with Romero began as a traditional brand ambassador role, the partnership was quickly a success, selling out a 1,000-bottle limited-edition run and spurring spin-off spirits with Hart’s autograph and sketches included in the packaging.

Many fan brands and athlete partnerships live in these niche or hyperlocal spaces, which makes them especially fun finds for travelers.

Why now?

Flagship stores for the world’s most popular sports team have long attracted international travelers. Photo: Antonello Marangi/Shutterstock

Sports fandom has always been deeply personal, but modern-day commercialization of the branding has also made it portable. Fandom goes beyond just watching games. Fans buy jerseys, follow the players on social media, travel around team schedules, and arrive hours early to events to tailgate.

Fandom is no longer just about the game, but about belonging and kinship. A bottle linked to a beloved athlete does more than hold alcohol. It holds the memories of a Triple Crown season, an epic play, or a destination of importance to a person’s favorite player. Alcohol affiliated with a team or player turns nostalgia and emotion into something tangible. In a culture that increasingly values experiences over possessions, athlete-inspired libations offer a bit of both.

I enjoyed my rum tasting adventures in Aruba — because, well, who wouldn’t? But it was more than just sipping boozy drinks against a backdrop of dreamy views. It was about how it made me feel when I spotted a Detroit great on a bodega shelf. I was 2,200 miles away from my hometown, but instantly knew I had a friend nearby.