--- title: Neknomination: The Deadly Social Media Drinking Game Coming To U.S. description: 'Neknomination' challenges reportedly responsible for deaths in Britain. Is the U.S. next? canonical: https://time.com/7933/the-deadly-social-media-drinking-game-set-to-invade-the-u-s/ author: Francesca Trianni article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-02-15T22:21:37.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-21T06:25:20.604Z article:section: Health og:title: Neknomination: The Deadly Social Media Drinking Game Coming To U.S. og:description: 'Neknomination' challenges reportedly responsible for deaths in Britain. Is the U.S. next? og:url: https://time.com/7933/the-deadly-social-media-drinking-game-set-to-invade-the-u-s/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6756e74f067c503e/698682983bc9992abe1a2059/drinking_export_1280.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1280 og:image:height: 720 og:image:alt: Drinking Game Neknomination og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Neknomination: The Deadly Social Media Drinking Game Coming To U.S. twitter:description: 'Neknomination' challenges reportedly responsible for deaths in Britain. Is the U.S. next? twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6756e74f067c503e/698682983bc9992abe1a2059/drinking_export_1280.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Deadly Social Media Drinking Game Set To Invade The U.S. > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=6e051754-1ab3-4dc6-a4c1-a81176f8ccb9&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1)  by [Francesca Trianni](https://time.com/author/francesca-trianni/)  ## Francesca Trianni Feb 15, 2014 10:21 PM UTC  The latest drinking craze comes from Britain and it's already claiming lives. The latest drinking craze comes from Britain and it's already claiming lives. CNN  by [Francesca Trianni](https://time.com/author/francesca-trianni/)  ## Francesca Trianni Feb 15, 2014 10:21 PM UTC A potentially hazardous internet drinking game called ‘NekNomination’ has reportedly [claimed](http://www.independent.co.uk/student/news/internet-neknomination-drinking-game-linked-to-two-deaths-over-the-weekend-grows-in-popularity-amongst-british-students-9105254.html) two lives in the U.K., and has some worried it might spread to teenagers in the United States too. The game is simple: teens film themselves downing a drink and post the video on social media. Then, they nominate a friend to outdo them. If the rival doesn’t post a more extreme video, he or she is ridiculed on Facebook or Twitter for not participating in the game. Dares have included drinking alcohol from a toilet bowl, or even mixed with dog food, a dead mouse or a live goldfish. The competitive nature of the game has authorities worried, with some[ wondering](http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/poll/2014/feb/11/neknominate-facebook-ban-drinking-game-deaths-social-networking) if Facebook should take a more active role in closing down pages that encourage potentially dangerous drinking. The game began in Australia, according to CNN, but some say it’s only a matter of time before this mix of alcoholic excess, social media and peer pressure becomes a recognizable trend in the United States. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/7933/the-deadly-social-media-drinking-game-set-to-invade-the-u-s/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/7933/the-deadly-social-media-drinking-game-set-to-invade-the-u-s/"},"headline":"The Deadly Social Media Drinking Game Set To Invade The U.S.","datePublished":"2014-02-15T22:21:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T06:25:20.604Z","description":"'Neknomination' challenges reportedly responsible for deaths in Britain. 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