Brat Days 2025: Return Revamped, Recharged, and Ready to Celebrate

ByChristine Plocar
Share

Brat Days 2025: A Tradition Set to Bring Flavor and Fun back to Sheboygan

By Christine Plocar
Sheboygan Life

For over 70 years, Brat Days has been a beloved summer tradition in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, celebrating the city’s strong German heritage and its reputation as the “Bratwurst Capital of the World.” The festival, which began in 1953, was originally organized to promote Sheboygan’s businesses and raise funds for community projects. Over the years, Brat Days grew from a modest celebration into a multi-day event featuring live music, a brat-eating contest, family activities, carnival rides, and a beer garden—drawing visitors from across the Midwest.

The Sheboygan Jaycees, a local chapter of the Junior Chamber of Commerce, have proudly run Brat Days for decades. Each year, a new chairperson steps up to lead the effort, bringing a fresh vision to the event while staying true to its roots. Throughout the years, Brat Days has evolved with changing times, weathered economic challenges, and even navigated global events like the COVID-19 pandemic—all while keeping community spirit and bratwurst at its core.

This year, Brat Days 2025 takes place on Saturday, August 2, as a one-day celebration packed with entertainment and hometown charm. Events will include the famous Brat-eating contest, live music from multiple bands, the Brat City Baggers cornhole tournament, and Karaoke Idol, a local competition that’s sure to bring in talent and laughs. Local legend Pat McCurdy will return to the stage following the brat-eating contest, drawing crowds with his signature humor and music.

Here are some photos from Thursday of the setup of the rides that the families will enjoy!

In an exclusive interview with this year’s chairperson, Danielle Brooks, reporter Christine Plocar asked about the changes and what attendees can expect.

Christine: I heard that it’s one day this year? Is it because of a lack of sponsorship?

Danielle: Yeah, so sponsorship is part of it but also we’re trying to revamp what brat days was because of the changing world with Covid and everything. We’re trying to cut down costs and since we give it all back to the community, we needed to figure out how to re-evaluate our areas so we outsource to a lot of community groups to help, like the family area. It will be run by a church. Um so we’re outsourcing a bunch of our projects so our resources can better go to different people. So the “one day” is to focus that all in.

Last year we had problems with security measures in the essence of children that were causing problems and we had some problems with the police. So in agreeance with them we were able to. If we brought it to them one day and kind of manage those issues first, we would be able to focus and spread it out more. So we want to improve what we’ve done and make it better.

Christine: Are Jaycees still involved?

Danielle: Yeah, we are running it.
Christine: Oh you are with Jaycees.
Danielle: We just outsourced to certain projects within the Brat Days unit. The Jaycees are running it.
Christine: OK, great.
Christine: Are you having a band this year?
Danielle: Yeah we are having multiple bands. So they’re coming from all over. Blizzard of Randy is one of our biggest and then we have a tribute Def Leppard band that’s coming also.
Christine: So are you going to pay tribute to Ozzy?
Danielle: Yeah, Blizzard of Randy is an Ozzy tribute band. Yeah so they’re our second headliner. It’ll be super cool and we’ll be able to honor him in a special way. And then we have our Brat Days staples like Pat McCurdy. He’s coming back so he’s right after the brat eating contest. So that is super exciting cause he’ll be able to bring in the crowd. He brings in a great crowd, he does a great job. We have the Brat City Baggers group that’s coming to play the cornhole tournament. We also have Karaoke Idol which is a karaoke group that is coming to do a competition here.

Brat Days continues to be a showcase of Sheboygan’s community pride, food, and fun-loving spirit. Even with a condensed format this year, the festival promises to deliver everything locals and visitors have come to love—brats, music, laughter, and memories in the making. Unfortunately there will be no parade for 2025.

For more information on the schedule, vendors, and events, visit www.bratdays.com or follow the Sheboygan Jaycees on social media

Sheboygan Life Editor

Christine Plocar - Lifelong Sheboygan Resident & Community Advocate
My name is Christine Plocar, and I am proud to be a lifelong resident of Sheboygan. Growing up on farms in the area, I spent my early years helping my parents raise chickens and horses, and I loved planting gardens that blossomed with each season. Even now, I continue this tradition by raising chickens.

Education has always been important to me. I attended Fairview Elementary in Plymouth, followed by Farnsworth Middle School, and completed my high school education at both North and South High schools in Sheboygan. After the loss of my mother, I returned to school and, in a moment of pride, graduated with my daughter in 2014, earning honors despite the challenges we faced.

My entrepreneurial spirit has been a constant throughout my life. When I got my first computer, I knew that data entry and e-commerce were paths I wanted to explore. The summer of 2022 was a turning point for me when I met Brian Bateman. He saw my potential and gave me the opportunity to learn data entry and website management. Today, I play an active role in managing Sheboygan Life, where I write articles that highlight the positive aspects of our community and work to promote the good in our beloved city.

More About Sheboygan

Leave a Reply

One Comment