Chick-fil-A celebrates 80 years and thousands could win free food for a year

Chick-fil-A, the American fast-food restaurant chain founded by a devout Southern Baptist who built the company on Christian principles, is celebrating 80 years in business by offering customers a chance to win free food for a year. 

The popular fast-food chain announced last Monday that it had launched its first-ever year-long nationwide "Newstalgia"-inspired celebration, offering new menu items and merchandise to coincide with the event. 

As part of the celebration, Chick-fil-A customers can purchase and collect four retro-inspired cup designs, available for $3.99 each. The cups feature designs that celebrate Chick-fil-A’s past and present in honor of its 80-year heritage, according to the company’s website. 

The cups are wrapped so that the designs remain hidden until they are opened. As part of the Golden Fan Cup Sweepstakes, 3,000 customers who find themselves drinking from one of the specialty Gold Fan Cups can redeem a prize of free Chick-fil-A for a year. 

Each of the specialty Gold Fan Cups is randomly distributed across restaurants nationwide, according to Chick-fil-A’s website. The sweepstakes will run until July 1.

Inside the 3,000 Golden Fan Cups are instructions and a QR code that customers can scan to claim their prize. 

The prize includes 52 entrées, according to the fast-food chain’s website, with customers able to choose from the original Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich, the spicy chicken sandwich, the grilled chicken sandwich or the Chick-fil-A nuggets.

“This year marks more than an anniversary — it’s a celebration of the memories, meals and meaningful moments that have brought people together at Chick-fil-A for generations,” Khalilah Cooper, vice president of brand strategy, advertising and media said in a statement last Monday.

“We have so much in store this year, delivering menu items and experiences that are fresh and exciting yet firmly rooted in Chick-fil-A’s renowned quality, care, generosity, and hospitality,” Cooper continued. “We’re inviting Guests — old and new — to join us in celebrating our heritage, while looking ahead to the future with us.”

Chick-fil-A founder S. Truett Cathy began his food empire in 1946, launching The Dwarf Grill in Hapeville, Georgia. The location became the birthplace of the Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich that is commonly associated with the brand. 

In 1967, the first Chick-fil-A restaurant began in Atlanta's Greenbriar Shopping Center, and the fast-food franchise currently operates over 3,000 locations across the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom and Singapore.

In addition to the Golden Fan Cup Sweepstakes, the company is adding frosted sodas and floats to its permanent menu. According to the website, the two new beverage items are “inspired by nostalgic soda fountain favorites.”

The drinks are made with Chick-fil-A’s classic Icedream frozen dairy dessert, and customers can choose from a variety of soda options to mix with one of the beverages.

Chick-fil-A will also serve its original chicken sandwich for a limited time in “retro packaging,” according to the company, which it says is inspired by the fast-food restaurant’s earliest designs. The retro packaging features “vintage-style graphics” pulled from the Chick-fil-A archives, with the new packaging available at restaurants nationwide.

In addition to its infamous chicken sandwich, Chick-fil-A has developed a reputation as a family-owned business that promotes family-centric policies.

The business has faced backlash over the years, notably after CEO Dan Cathy expressed support for the "biblical definition of the family unit” in 2012. Following pressure from some LGBT activist groups, Chick-fil-A stopped donating to the Salvation Army and Fellowship of Christian Athletes in 2019, organizations that also support the biblical definition of marriage.