The Times Square ball will be lit in red, white and blue on New Year’s Eve to launch the U.S. semiquincentennial and preview months of nationwide events celebrating the nation’s 250th anniversary. At midnight, America250 will formally launch America Gives, a national service initiative aiming to make 2026 the largest year of volunteer hours on record. Organizers also plan a July 3 ball drop in Times Square and will appear in the Rose Parade with a float featuring three giant bald eagles; President Trump has announced a separate Freedom 250 effort.
Times Square to Glow Red, White & Blue: Patriotic Ball Drop Launches U.S. 250th Anniversary
This image provided by America250 in December 2025 shows the New Year's Eve ball designed for the U.S.'s 250th year. (Damon Haimoff/America250 via AP)
The Times Square New Year’s Eve ball will be illuminated in red, white and blue to welcome 2026 and officially launch months of nationwide events commemorating the United States' 250th anniversary.
The patriotic design accents for this year’s Times Square celebration — including a second confetti drop at midnight — are intended as an early preview of the semiquincentennial: hundreds of programs, large and small, planned across the country to mark the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
'I’m telling you right now, whatever you’re imagining, it’s going to be much more than that,' said America250 Chair Rosie Rios, who leads the bipartisan commission created by Congress in 2016 to coordinate the semiquincentennial. 'It’s going to be one for the ages, the most inspirational celebration this country and maybe the world has ever seen.'
Rios and the America250 commission worked with the Times Square Alliance and One Times Square — the building from which the ball is dropped — to adjust this year’s ceremonies. They also announced a second ball drop on July 3, the eve of the nation's birthday, which Rios said will be staged 'in the same beautiful style that Times Square knows how to do it.' If held, it would be the first Times Square ball drop on a date other than New Year’s Eve in 120 years.
Historic Context
The New Year’s Eve ball tradition began in 1907. A young immigrant metalworker, Jacob Starr, built the original 700-pound (318 kg), 5-foot (1.5 m) diameter sphere from iron and wood and equipped it with 100 25-watt light bulbs. Last year’s Constellation Ball — the ninth and largest version — measured roughly 12 feet (3.7 m) across and weighed nearly 12,000 pounds (5,400 kg).
The ball was not dropped only twice in its history, in 1942 and 1943, when the city imposed nightly dimouts during World War II to guard against potential attacks. On those New Year’s Eves, crowds observed a moment of silence and listened to chimes rung from the base of One Times Square.
What Midnight Will Also Mark
At the stroke of midnight, organizers will formally launch America Gives, a national service initiative from America250 that aims to make 2026 the largest single year of volunteer hours ever recorded in the United States. The initiative is part of a broader effort to make the semiquincentennial community-driven and inclusive.
On New Year’s Day, America250 plans to appear in the Rose Parade in Pasadena, California, with a float titled “Soaring Onward Together for 250 Years.” The float will feature three larger-than-life bald eagles representing the nation’s past, present and future.
President Donald Trump has separately announced a Freedom 250 initiative to coordinate additional commemorative events tied to the 250th anniversary.
Rios emphasized that the semiquincentennial is intended to be grassroots and inclusive, with events and projects ranging from large fireworks and statewide potlucks to student contests and citizen oral-history projects. 'If we can find something for everyone ... having those menus of options that people can pick and choose how they want to participate,' she said, 'that’s how we’re going to get to engaging 350 million Americans.'
