A Football-Shaped Stunner with Tavern-Style Cut That’s Easy to Share!
We’re getting ready to kick off a Superbowl Pizza Party that’s going right through the uprights and out our end zone! (Did I just say that??) Sure, we’re going to have some classics like nachos, chips, veggies, etc. But we do pizza, so we need a pizza theme!
So we’re highlighting a pizza that looks ready to play! We’ll also jump to some conclusions about who are likely going to be squaring off and we’re planning to pay a little tribute to those teams as well – but more on that later!
Down – Set – Hut!
Got to Start with some History: The Superbowl and Superbowl Parties!
The Superbowl didn’t start off as the mega event we know today. Back in 1967, when the first game kicked off between the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs, it was more of a modest affair—far from the over-the-top spectacle we see now. Over time, it evolved into a day synonymous with friends, family, and of course, food.
And what food says party better thank pizza?
I love how the tradition of gathering for the Big Game brings friends and family together – not to argue over politics like Thanksgiving dinner (or some other family drama), but to cheer, high-five, groan, and scream as one! It’s a day when rivalries are friendly (mostly), snacks are endless, and the energy in the room is electric. Whether you’re passionately rooting for your team or just here for the commercials and halftime show, the Superbowl is all about that shared excitement (and food) —the collective buzz of a room full of people who just can’t sit still. And what better way to fuel that energy than with an epic party pizza that’s as over-the-top as the event itself?
Superbowl Pizza Party Kickoff Time!
Before we get down to the food, let’s spend a minute on the accessories for a great pizza party. We have a whole article on pizza party ideas especially for adults, but here are a few tidbits:
1. Oven-friendly Appetizers and Sides!
Since you have to pre-heat it anyway, go ahead and use your oven to get some extra hot items on the table. You can heat up a cast iron skillet to cook up brussels sprouts or asparagus! Are you using a grill to make your pizza? Go ahead and cook up some wings!
2. Be Prepared
- Have your dough ready to go in advance. Make sure it’s at room temperature.
- Have all of your toppings read to go too! If you’re making toppings that require prep, do that early or even the day before!
One trick we’re going to use will be cutting our pizza tavern style so that the smaller, bite-sized pieces can be shared more easily.
Okay, enough talk – Time to make a football-shaped pizza that’ll have your guests raving long after the final whistle!
Recipe: Superbowl Football Pizza (Tavern-Style Cut Pigskin Pizza)
Our pigskin pizza is going to be topped with proscuitto because that’s one wonderful bit of pigskin! We also love speck or pastrami – or all three! Feel free to use your own favorite pork, pork alternatives – or any topping you want that will create a nice bit of color contrast!
Ingredients
For the Football-Shaped Crust:
- 1 lb. of pre-made pizza dough (like Trader Joe’s pizza dough) or else try our Thin Crust Pizza Dough. Just note that the recipe for that makes a slightly smaller pizza.
- 1/2 teaspoon of olive oil
For the Sauce:
- 7 ounces tomato sauce
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp dried (or fresh) basil
- Salt to taste
- Optional: garlic and/or onion. But those aren’t always the best for a party!
For the Toppings:
- 8 ounces shredded mozzarella
- 4 ounces (might be more than one package) of prosciutto (or your favorite toppings).
Alternatives: We also love using Speck for this pizza, although it’s not as easy to find in the grocery store. You could also use pastrami!
Instructions for Making our Superbowl Pizza
Pre-Game Huddle
Preheat the oven at least 30 minutes before starting the bake. Follow the cooking instructions for your pizza dough for the temperature, which will likely be 450 F.
Kick It Off With Sauce
- In a sauce pan, warm the tomato sauce on medium to begin to thicken it. Because this pizza will be cut into a lot of small slices, a thicker sauce will make this an easier finger food.
- Add in your seasonings – oregano, basil, and salt to taste. While garlic and onion powder might be a tempting addition, maybe everyone’s breath will be a little better if you leave those out this time!
- Stir and reduce the heat to very low while you continue.
First Down: Dough Formation
- Bring your dough to room temperature.
- Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes until smooth.
- Roll out the dough into an oval shape, about 16 inches long and 10 inches wide, to mimic a pigskin.
- Dock the dough across the entire pizza with a fork to prevent air bubbles. This will help the pizza retain it’s shape
- Very lightly brush a thin layer of olive oil to the top – to improve the crispiness.
- Lightly oil a half-sheet pan (18″ x 13″) – again for an extra crispy crust.
- Place the rolled-out dough onto the half-sheet pan. Manually reform the dough, as it will change shape a bit during the transfer.
- If you’re really struggling with the shape, go ahead and use scissors to trim the ends to make a nice, pointy ball.
Pre-Bake the Crust
- Bake for 5 minutes until the crust starts to firm but not browning yet. This will firm up the crust a lot, which will help since the pizza is likely to sit a while before eaten completely.
Grab the Pigskin
- I’ve found that the prosciutto is best to work with when still cold, so remove from the fridge during the first bake.
- Because prosciutto will shrink when cooked, I should have cut it into squares and overlapped them more. Don’t make my mistake!
Ready, Set, Sauce!
- Spread the tomato sauce evenly over the crust, leaving a very small border around the ball.
- Because the pizza will be sliced tavern style, you don’t want very much crust without toppings.
Decorate the Field
- Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella generously over the sauce covering it entirely.
- Leave some cheese to make the stripes and the laces.
- Layout the prosciutto to make a football shape covering the pizza.
- Extra Point: Add the stripes and laces with some extra cheese!
- Add any other toppings you love, keeping them evenly distributed for easy sharing.
Fourth and Goal: Bake to Win
- Bake the pizza for another 12-15 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is golden brown.
- Rotate the pizza halfway through to make sure for an even bake.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for 2-3 minutes before cutting.
Two-Minute Warning: Cut this pizza Tavern-Style
Using a pizza rocker (if available), pizza scissors, or pizza cutter, slice the pizza into squares or rectangles, making it easy for everyone to grab a piece. Typical triangle slices won’t go as far. This let’s people snack on pizza as part of their Superbowl experience rather than having it to the exclusion of the other food on display.
Touchdown: Serve and Celebrate!
Your pizza’s done, now it’s time to share and enjoy with your team!
Superbowl Pizza Party: Alternatives for the “Favored” Teams
Kansas City Style Superbowl Pizza for Chiefs Fans
Okay, there’s no such thing as Kansas City Style Pizza. But Kansas is well known for several of its foods, including its incredible BBQ (pretty much always with dill pickles) and cheesy corn casserole, a rich, comforting dish that’s often served alongside BBQ platters.
To honor these foods, our Chiefs-themed pizza features a tangy Kansas City-style BBQ pizza on a smoked sourdough crust with dill pickles, sharp cheddar cheese, and sweet corn kernels.
And don’t forget the crust—it’s sourdough, in recognition of Kansas’s role in inventing sourdough donuts. The result? A perfect combination of smoky, salty, tangy, and sweet flavors.
Here’s what makes it special:
- Smoked Sourdough crust for a tangy base.
- Kansas City-style BBQ sauce for that sweet and smoky flavor.
- Shredded BBQ meat for hearty protein.
- Sharp cheddar cheese for a bold, savory punch.
- Dill pickles as a finishing touch to add a bright, tangy contrast.
- Sweet corn kernels for a touch of sweetness and crunch on top.
- Crispy bacon bits for extra saltiness.
Again, while not an official Kansas City style, we think this pizza perfectly blends Kansas City’s BBQ heritage with fun, regional flavors to celebrate these 4-time Superbowl winners.
Want to try making it? Check out our Kansas City BBQ Pizza with Smoked Sourdough Crust, Bacon, and Cheesy Corn recipe!
Superbowl Football Pizza Party
Equipment
- 1 Half-sheet Baking Pan Or any other pan that will fit your large football pizza.
- 1 Cutting board
- 1 Pizza Rocker Alternatively pizza scissors or pizza cutter.
Ingredients
- 16 ounces Pizza dough Try using Trader Joe's pizza dough if using pre-made or try our Thin Crust Dough recipe if making yourself.
For the sauce
- 7 ounces tomato sauce I prefer Mutti
- ½ teaspoon oregano dried
- ½ teaspoon basil dried or fresh
- 1 pinch salt to taste
For the topping
- 4 ounces Prosciutto
- 8 ounces mozzarella cheese shredded
Instructions
Pre-Game Huddle
- Preheat the oven at least 30 minutes before starting the bake. Follow the cooking instructions for your pizza dough for the temperature, which will likely be 450 F.
Kick It Off With Sauce
- In a sauce pan, warm the tomato sauce on medium to begin to thicken it. Because this pizza will be cut into a lot of small slices, a thicker sauce will make this an easier finger food.
- Add in your seasonings – oregano, basil, and salt to taste. While garlic and onion powder might be a tempting addition, maybe everyone’s breath will be a little better if you leave those out this time!
- Stir and reduce the heat to very low while you continue.
First Down: Dough Formation
- Bring your dough to room temperature.
- Roll out the dough into an oval shape, about 17 inches long and 10 inches wide, to mimic a pigskin.
- Dock the dough across the entire pizza with a fork to prevent air bubbles. This will help the pizza retain it’s shape
- Very lightly brush another layer of olive oil to the top – again to improve the crispiness.
- Lightly oil a half-sheet pan (18″ x 13″).
- Place the rolled-out dough onto the half-sheet pan. Manually reform the dough, as it will change shape a bit during the transfer.
- If you're having trouble with the shape, don't be afraid to use scissors to trim the ends to make a nice, pointy ball.
Pre-Bake the Crust
- Bake for 5 minutes until the crust starts to firm but not browning yet. This will firm up the crust a lot, which will help since the pizza is likely to sit a while before eaten completely.
Grab the Pigskin
- I’ve found that the prosciutto is best to work with when still cold, so remove from the fridge during the first bake.
- Because prosciutto will shrink when cooked, I should have cut it into squares and overlapped them more. Don’t make my mistake!
Ready, Set, Sauce!
- Spread the tomato sauce evenly over the crust, leaving a very small border around the ball.
- Because the pizza will be sliced tavern style, you don’t want very much crust without toppings.
Decorate the Field
- Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella generously over the sauce covering it entirely.
- Leave some cheese to make the stripes and the laces.
- Layout the prosciutto to make a football shape covering the pizza.
- Add the stripes and laces.
Fourth and Goal: Bake to Win
- Bake the pizza for another 12-15 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is golden brown.For most ovens, it's best to rotate the pizza halfway through baking. But it's a big pizza, so you might have to rotate more than once to get an even cook.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for 2-3 minutes before cutting.
Two-Minute Warning: Cut this pizza Tavern-Style
- Using a pizza rocker (if available), pizza scissors, or pizza cutter, slice the pizza into squares or rectangles, making it easy for everyone to grab a piece. Typical triangle slices won’t go as far. This let’s people snack on pizza as part of their Superbowl experience rather than having it to the exclusion of the other food on display.
Touchdown: Serve and Celebrate!
- Your pizza’s done, now it’s time to share and enjoy with your team!
Nutrition
Todd’s cooking skills have revolved around the grill since about age 12, when he developed a love for grilling and took over for Mom at the BBQ. He worked at Wendy’s and at Earl’s Tin Palace (a restaurant chain in Canada) but never really did any sort of baking…until he and Heather started making pizza together! Now he’s often making dough in the mornings and pizza in the evenings.