Some things unite us. Today is one of those days (even if it’s only the commercials).
Hence, some interesting tidbits and facts that may or may not be related to the actual sport…
The very first Super Bowl wasn’t called the “Super Bowl,” and it also featured the Kansas City Chiefs. It was 1967 and they would not be victorious, losing to the Green Bay Packers, led by the oft quotable Vince Lombardi.
It was Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt, who first coined the term “Super Bowl,” which became the official moniker with the game’s third annual installment.
Roman numerals to identify the Super Bowl began with its fifth edition. There has been one exception since, when in 2016 the game was referred to as “Super Bowl 50.”
In Super Bowl VI, Pres. Richard Nixon drew up a play for Dolphin’s head coach Don Shula, suggesting a passing route for receiver Paul Warfield. Tom Landry’s Cowboys stifled the play, refusing to get beat by a president’s executive order.
Pres. Trump will resume the presidential Super Bowl interview tradition. The tradition began in 2004 with CBS and Pres. George W. Bush. Trump will also be the first sitting US President to attend the game.
Approximately 120 million people are expected to watch the Super Bowl live this year.
According to the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, this Sunday in February is the second-highest day of food consumption in the US — behind only Thanksgiving. While I’m uncertain how exactly they obtain this data, the most popular game-day delicacies are pizza, spinach artichoke dip, buffalo chicken dip and chicken wings. It’s estimated that 1.45 billion chicken wings are consumed on Super Bowl Sunday. (On the healthier side, 304 million pounds of avocados will be purchased, presumably to add guacamole to the table.)
To the victor comes many things, one of which is an ornate, celebratory ring. On average, these rings cost $30,000–$50,000 per ring, although the Giants were so excited in winning XXV that their rings cost $230,000 each.
The least expensive ticket today costs $5,258. Tickets to the very first Super Bowl cost between $6 to $12. Adjusting for inflation, that equates to approximately $57 to $115 today.
As for the television market for the two teams involved, Philadelphia is now the fifth largest TV market and Kansas City ranks 33rd.
Andy Reid, current coach of Kansas City, is the winningest head coach for both teams.
12 NFL teams have never won the Super Bowl: the Browns, Bills, Chargers, Bengals (who dey), Cardinals, Falcons, Lions, Jaguars, Panthers, Texans, Titans, and Vikings. 4 teams — the Browns, Jaguars, Lions, and Texans — have never even made it to the championship game.
The Minnesota Vikings have played in 4 Super Bowls but have never held a lead.
The commercials are always a highlight. Reports are that a 30 second ad this year originally cost $7 million. The last ten 30 second slots available reached a record $8 million each.
Halftime celebrity performers are not paid for their performance, but the exposure is reportedly worth millions.
A new trend is featuring multiple celebrities in Super Bowl commercials, with brands attempting to appeal to a broader audience.
When last year’s Super Bowl went into OT, CBS was estimated to have earned an additional $695 million in ad revenue.
There’s something to “The Taylor Swift Effect,” with the pop singer dating Chief’s tight end Travis Kelce. With their relationship going public last year, there was a reported growth of over 24% in female viewers ages 18-24. (Wonder what would happen if Kelce proposed on field after a potential KC victory…)
Time for Super Bowl LIX, played at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans this weekend… always love things that have the potential to unite us.
Respectfully… (go Bengals go…)
AR
[Intramuralist note: With the statistics quoted above, note that sources included Business Insider, Crescent City Sports, Forbes, iSpot, Parade Magazine, Readers Digest, and Wikipedia.]