McDonald's has created a new food holiday for its Egg McMuffin and will celebrate by giving away free breakfast sandwiches.

Almost 50 years after the sandwich debuted in 1971, McDonald's is marking its first-ever National Egg McMuffin Day on Monday, March 2. The day coincidentally – or perhaps purposefully – is when Wendy's breakfast menu launches nationwide.

To get the free Egg McMuffin between 6 and 10:30 a.m. local time Monday, you'll need to download the McDonald's mobile app and register an account. No purchase is necessary to get the freebie at participating locations.

But McDonald's isn't alone in giving away free breakfast sandwiches – so is Wendy's. Fast-food rivals have been launching food wars frequently including Wendy's who poked McDonald's in early February when announcing its March 2 nationwide launch.

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Wendy's has several breakfast coupons on its app, including one for a free Honey Butter Chicken Biscuit with a purchase, which expires April 6.

Many Wendy's restaurants started serving breakfast ahead of Monday as a soft launch. The menu also includes the Breakfast Baconator and Frosty-ccino.

Wendy's app has coupons for $1 small Frosty-ccino, $2 off any breakfast or premium combo, and buy one B'fast Croissant, get one for $1.

The restaurant's breakfast hours are 6:30 to 10:30 a.m., though times vary for ordering in the restaurant versus the drive-thru. According to Wendy's website, the breakfast comes with a guarantee that if you don't love an item, the chain will exchange it for free. The promotion is for a limited time and is “subject to cancellation at any time.”

This is not the first time Wendy’s has tried out a national breakfast menu.

In the mid-1980s, the chain’s morning menu included omelets, French toast and toasted sandwiches. But because the items took too long to make, the breakfast menu was discontinued, though there have been small tests across the nation for several years.

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Here are two other recent food wards:

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Follow USA TODAY reporter Kelly Tyko on Twitter: @KellyTyko