A Super Bowl is the most important game in an NFL calendar. It is the night when the best team across both conferences is presented with the iconic Vince Lombardi trophy, after an hour of exciting football. Sometimes, the games themselves are set to make history, as is the case with this year’s game. The question that comes up then is why the NFL isn’t hosting the game in a more iconic location.
Advertisement
The reason for that is very simple: the locations for Super Bowls are not decided overnight or on a whim. There is a lengthy process that ultimately decides which city will host a Super Bowl. How lengthy is the process, and how far in advance are venues selected? Well, the next two Super Bowl venues have already been decided (Las Vegas and New Orleans, respectively), so that should give some idea.
Matt Shapiro, Vice President of Events Strategy for the NFL, spoke to Axios about the process of selecting a city. According to Shapiro, the process starts years ago when teams express their interest in hosting the Super Bowl for a particular year. Teams also need to coordinate with their city to gauge interest in hosting such a game.
The NFL, on their part, will look at proposals with an eye on future plans and past venues. After this, the Fan Engagement and Major Events Advisory Committee reviews all potential cities. The committee is made up of 11 NFL clubs, represented by their owners or Presidents. Post this, the locations are finally put to vote before the NFL owners, and the selected venue is announced.
What else does the NFL look at when selecting a Super Bowl venue?
According to Shapiro, one of the major factors in selecting a venue is the presence of good infrastructure nearby. “Super Bowl is not just Super Bowl Sunday,” he says. “There’s a tremendous amount of events throughout the week”. The weather too is an important factor. Though the NFL has at times hosted a Super Bowl in a cold city. Like in 2014 (New York’s MetLife Stadium).
One other factor is how long it has been since a city has acted as host to a Super Bowl game. Shapiro says the local partnership and support is also a crucial factor: “politically, logistically, and otherwise.”
With the advent of “International Games” in the NFL, the possibility of hosting a Super Bowl abroad is not entirely out of the question. “I think we would never broadly take something entirely off the table. But at this point, at least in the short-term horizon, we’re focused on domestic cities,” Shapiro says.
This year’s game will make history for multiple reasons. It is the first time two black QBs are facing off against each other. It is also the first time two brothers are playing on opposing ends. Patrick Mahomes can add another feather to his cap by becoming the first AP MVP awardee to win a Super Bowl in the same year. Most importantly, pop star Rihanna is making a comeback to live shows after almost 4 years.
