Quarterbacks Crisps: The Complete Guide

Golden Wonder Quarter Backs were a cheeseburger-flavoured baked corn snack shaped like American football players. Golden Wonder replaced them with Barbecue Strikers, a similar snack in the same format but with a BBQ flavour instead. Old Quarter Backs stock occasionally surfaces online, but they are no longer in production.

Quarter Backs were one of those crisps you either grew up with or completely missed. Small, light, shaped vaguely like a person doing a star jump, and packed with a flavour that was more beef and cheddar than anything resembling an actual cheeseburger. They were never a top-shelf supermarket staple but they were a fixture in newsagents, corner shops, and school tuck shops for years. Affordable, distinctive, and unlike anything else in the Golden Wonder range.

Then they disappeared. No announcement, no farewell campaign, just a quiet exit from the shelves while Barbecue Strikers arrived to take their spot.

What Were Quarter Backs?

The basics

Quarter Backs were baked corn snacks made by Golden Wonder, shaped to resemble American football players. The cheeseburger flavour seasoning gave them a savoury, beefy, slightly cheesy taste that sat somewhere between Roast Beef Monster Munch and a cheese puff. The cheeseburger label was generous. There was no gherkin, no relish, no burger-in-a-bun complexity. What you got was a straightforward beef and cheddar hit in a light, crunchy corn base.

Each 25g bag came in under 100 calories, which made them a popular lunchbox choice. At their peak they sold for around 20-30p a bag, which put them firmly in the pocket money snack category.

Who made them

Golden Wonder, owned by the Tayto Group, produced Quarter Backs at their Corby factory in Northamptonshire. Golden Wonder have been making crisps in the UK since 1947 and are responsible for a long list of distinctive snacks including Ringos, Transform a Snack, and Nik Naks.

The shape

The corn puff shape was meant to evoke an American football quarterback. In practice it looked more like a small stick figure with its arms out. That gap between concept and execution was part of the charm. The shape was distinctive enough to be immediately recognisable, which is more than most snacks can say.

Are Quarter Backs Discontinued?

Yes, they have been replaced

Golden Wonder discontinued Quarter Backs and replaced them with Barbecue Strikers. The format is essentially the same: a baked corn snack in a similar shape and size. The difference is the flavour. Where Quarter Backs were cheeseburger, Barbecue Strikers are BBQ flavour. It is a different product, not a rename.

The eBay listings that explicitly described Barbecue Strikers as the replacement confirmed this was a deliberate swap rather than a production pause. Quarter Backs are not coming back.

When did it happen

No official announcement was made by Golden Wonder. The replacement appears to have happened gradually, with Quarter Backs becoming harder to find from around 2022 to 2023 as Barbecue Strikers took over the shelf space. Old stock continued to circulate through clearance retailers and eBay sellers for some time after that.

Why did Golden Wonder replace them

Golden Wonder have not given a public reason. The most likely explanation is a portfolio simplification, shifting to a flavour with broader appeal. BBQ is one of the most consistently popular crisp flavours in the UK. Cheeseburger is more niche. The move mirrors what PepsiCo did with Smiths Snaps: cutting a distinctive but lower-volume product in favour of something more commercially straightforward.

Quarter Backs vs Barbecue Strikers

What stayed the same

The format is the same. Baked corn snack, same sort of shape, same size, same price point. If you liked Quarter Backs because they were light and crunchy rather than for the specific flavour, Barbecue Strikers will scratch the same itch.

What changed

The flavour is completely different. Cheeseburger seasoning had that beefy, cheesy, slightly savoury quality. BBQ is smoky, sweeter, and more tomato-forward. They are not interchangeable if the cheeseburger flavour was what you were there for. Fans who have tried Barbecue Strikers are broadly positive about the taste but consistent in saying they are not the same thing.

Where to Buy Barbecue Strikers

Barbecue Strikers are the active Golden Wonder product in this format and are available to buy now. You can search for Golden Wonder Barbecue Strikers on Amazon for single bags and multipacks, or find them on eBay where bulk boxes often come up at good prices.

Hunting for Original Quarter Backs

Old stock does still surface occasionally. Clearance sellers and collectors sometimes list remaining bags, though supply is limited and prices vary. If you want to check what is out there, search eBay for Golden Wonder Quarter Backs and see what comes up. Do not expect large quantities or reasonable prices.

Quarter Backs: Dietary and Nutrition Information

Ingredients

Quarter Backs were made from maize, rapeseed oil, and a cheeseburger flavour seasoning that included whey powder, wheat flour, cheese powder, and milk protein. The seasoning was what gave them their distinctive taste and also what ruled out most dietary requirements.

Are Quarter Backs vegan?

No. Quarter Backs contained milk in multiple forms including whey powder, cheese powder, and milk protein. They were not suitable for vegans or anyone avoiding dairy.

Are Quarter Backs vegetarian?

Yes. Despite the cheeseburger name, Quarter Backs contained no meat ingredients and were suitable for vegetarians.

Are Quarter Backs gluten free?

No. Quarter Backs contained wheat flour in the seasoning blend and were not gluten free.

Calories

Each 25g bag contained under 100 calories, which made them one of the lighter options in the Golden Wonder range. The full nutritional breakdown per 100g: energy 497 kcal, fat 24.9g, carbohydrates 59.3g, protein 6.1g, salt 1.35g.

Other Golden Wonder Snacks Worth Trying

If you are a Quarter Backs fan looking for alternatives still in production, the Golden Wonder range has a few options worth considering.

Transform a Snack are another distinctive Golden Wonder shape-based snack with a strong following. Ringos are a lighter, ring-shaped option available in several flavours. For the full current Golden Wonder range, browse Golden Wonder crisps here.

And if you are in the mood for another discontinued crisp story, the Smiths Snaps guide covers a very similar situation with a very different product.