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In 1934, the breakfast cereal Wheaties began the practice of including pictures of athletes on its packaging to coincide with its slogan, "The Breakfast of Champions." In its original form, athletes were depicted on the sides or back of the cereal box, though in 1958 Wheaties began placing the pictures on the front of the box. The tradition has included hundreds of athletes from many different sports, and also team depictions.[citation needed]
This article lists the athletes or teams depicted on Wheaties boxes, along with the year(s) of depiction and sport played. This list is not all-inclusive, and athletes may have been shown together with teams and groups, or on the sides, back, or front of the box. Most athletes appeared on the standard Wheaties box, while others appeared on the Honey Frosted Wheaties (HFW), Crispy Wheaties 'n' Raisins (CWR), Wheaties Energy Crunch (WEC), or Wheaties Fuel (WF) boxes.
Around 1990, General Mills did a promotion called "Picture Yourself on a Wheaties Box," in which, for a fee, they would make a custom Wheaties box from one's own photograph that was sealed in clear acrylic. Kristi Yamaguchi, among other athletes, was featured in advertising this campaign.[citation needed]
Individual athletes
editTeams
edit| Year | Team | Sport | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Minnesota Twins | Baseball | World Series Champions (first team depicted on box) | [6] |
| 1988 | Washington Redskins | Football | Super Bowl XXII | |
| 1992 | Pittsburgh Penguins | Hockey | Stanley Cup Champions | |
| 1993 | Dallas Cowboys | Football | Super Bowl XXVII Champions | |
| 1994 | Dallas Cowboys | Football | Super Bowl XXVIII Champions | |
| 1995 | Northwestern Wildcats | Football | Big Ten Champions | |
| 1995 | Atlanta Braves | Baseball | World Series Champions | |
| 1995 | Cleveland Indians | Baseball | American League Champions | |
| 1996 | Dallas Cowboys | Football | Super Bowl XXX Champions | |
| 1996 | U.S. Olympic Women's Gymnastics Team | Gymnastics | Olympic gold medalists | |
| 1997 | U.S. Olympic men's ice hockey team | Hockey (men) | Olympic gold medalists (1980) | |
| 1998 | Target Chip Ganassi Racing CART team | CART | CART FedEx Championship Series champions | |
| 1998 | Denver Broncos | Football | Super Bowl XXXII Champions | |
| 1998 | U.S. Olympic Women's Ice Hockey team | Hockey (women) | Olympic gold medalists Five members were unable to be included due to NCAA regulations regarding endorsements |
|
| 1998 | Arizona Diamondbacks | Baseball | inaugural season | |
| 1998 | De La Salle High School | Football | High School football | |
| 1998 | DeMatha High School | Football | High School football | |
| 2000 | St. Louis Rams | Football | Super Bowl XXXIV Champions | |
| 2001 | Dallas Cowboys | Football | "35 Years of Championship Performance" | |
| 2001 | Baltimore Ravens | Football | Super Bowl XXXV Champions | |
| 2002 | New England Patriots | Football | Super Bowl XXXVI Champions | |
| 2003 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Football | Super Bowl XXXVII Champions | |
| 2004 | Boston Red Sox | Baseball | World Series Champions | |
| 2005 | Texas Longhorns | Football | National Champions | |
| 2005 | Texas Western College | Basketball | NCAA Champions (1966) | |
| 2005 | Chicago White Sox | Baseball | World Series Champions | |
| 2006 | Miami Heat | Basketball | NBA Champions | |
| 2006 | Detroit Shock | Basketball | WNBA Champions | |
| 2006 | Georgia Bulldogs | Football | [7] | |
| 2006 | Michigan Wolverines | Football | ||
| 2006 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | Football | ||
| 2006 | Texas Longhorns | Football | 2 boxes in 2006 | |
| 2006 | Texas A&M Aggies | Football | ||
| 2006 | St. Louis Cardinals | Baseball | World Series Champions | |
| 2007 | Boston Red Sox | Baseball | World Series Champions | |
| 2007 | Florida Gators | Basketball (men) | ||
| 2007 | North Carolina Tar Heels | Basketball (men) | ||
| 2007 | Kentucky Wildcats | Basketball (men) | ||
| 2007 | Tennessee Lady Vols | Basketball (women) | [8] | |
| 2008 | Boston Celtics | Basketball | NBA Champions | |
| 2009 | Los Angeles Lakers | Basketball | NBA Champions | |
| 2010 | Los Angeles Lakers | Basketball | NBA Champions | |
| 2010 | Seattle Storm | Basketball | WNBA Champions |
Sources
edit- Wheaties Boxes 1984–2001 at the Wayback Machine (archived 3 January 2006)
- Wheaties Official Site Champions List
References
edit- ^ Menand, Louis (2020-05-25). "How Baseball Players Became Celebrities". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
- ^ "Wheaties – Brands – Food we make - General Mills". www.generalmills.com. Retrieved 2022-06-09.
- ^ "Cengage Learning". www.cengage.com. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
- ^ "Photo of Jim Thorpe Wheaties box". Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
- ^ "Video: Russell Wilson becomes the next athlete on Wheaties cereal box". ABC News. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
- ^ "Sports Then and Now – The Wheaties Box: A Champion's Cardboard Trophy". 27 September 2010. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
- ^ "Team meals: Michigan, Irish, Georgia on Wheaties box". ESPN.com. 19 September 2006. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
- ^ "WHEATIES HONORS UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE LADY VOLS BASKETBALL TRADITION - UTSPORTS.COM - University of Tennessee Athletics". Archived from the original on 2014-02-26.
