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On his announcement of the 125th Mummers Parade, coming bright and early Jan. 1, 2026, Sam Regalbuto, president of the string band association, reminded Philadelphians that Mummery predates the city’s officially sanctioned parade by at least a century.

“We date back to the early 1800s,” Regalbuto said. “The city saw back then what the Mummers meant to the community and the people of Philadelphia, and made it official.”

The Mummers will step off at 9 a.m. New Year’s Day at City Hall, parading south down Broad Street to Washington Avenue. The procession of fancies, string bands, wenches and comics is expected to involve about 10,000 participants, lasting until 5 p.m.

The parade is free to the public. It will be broadcast on WDPN, also known as METV2, and simulcast in the Lehigh Valley on WFMZ, Channel 69. It will be shown on cable television by most major carriers, including Comcast, Fios, DirectTV and Dish. The parade will be livestreamed on the WFMZ website and mobile app.

WDPN and WFMZ are owned by the Maranatha Broadcasting Company. CEO Barry Fisher said the company has agreed to televise the parade until at least 2028.

“We’re a locally owned station. We’ve never been sold to anybody,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons we could step up to the plate to do this. We recognize, as people who live here, the value of the Mummers to the community.”

For the fourth year, the title sponsor of the parade is Live! Casino and Hotel in South Philly.

“What your parade represents and why we’re so honored to support it for this fourth year is you celebrate everything that’s great about this city,” said Jake Joyce, senior vice president of marketing with Live! “Art, creativity, dance, music, community, community, community, community.”

To mark their 125th anniversary, the Mummers are releasing their first-ever plush doll, a smiling red-haired woman wearing an extravagantly plumed and glittery jacket, playing a banjo. The doll is not yet available, but it is expected to appear in the coming weeks in the Live! gift shop.

Two years ago, a USA Today poll ranked the Mummers as the No. 1 parade in America. The 2025 poll is still pending.

The parade is typically marked by social and political messaging in the performances. In the past, the parade has drawn strong criticism and has been threatened with cancellation after some performances have been read as racist or otherwise offensive.

Regalbuto said the Mummers are continuing to advance diversity and sensitivity training with the city’s administration.

“It’s misunderstood at times, but it’s about people, entertainment,” he said. “We’re not politicians. We’re not activists. We don’t have a message. We’re here to entertain the people of Philadelphia and those around the world who enjoy our creativity.”

One thing missing from the parade this year will be the late WMMR DJ Pierre Robert, who had been a regular visitor on the New Year’s Day broadcast. At a press event announcing parade details, fellow DJ Jackie Bam Bam donned a plumed Mummers hat and said his excitement about the Mummers of New Year’s Day has not abated in 50 years.

“Mama and Papa Bam Bam took me to the old Convention Hall bicentennial year 1976, first time ever, the fancy brigades came down one ramp and the string bands came down another and they joined,” he said. “It just blew my mind, like seeing Mick Jagger in the front row or Steven Tyler. I never lost that excitement. That’s the excitement the Mummers give.”