As someone who, in high school, ate lunches by the lockers
and ditched pep rallies to do homework, I was hardly a subscriber to the hype
of football and the fanaticism of the Super Bowl. In the small town in Colorado
where I grew up, you either played football or were a cheerleader (there was no
in-between). And come Super Bowl Sunday,
while everyone else was tailgating and preparing the queso dip and three bean
casserole, I was planning my outfit for my very lonely Oscars party in a couple
of weeks’ time.
But, however rebellious I tried to be, there was always one
part of the game that I never missed... Halftime.
Halftime is like Christmas brought to you by the NFL and the
ad industry. It’s that magical half hour when all types of people get to come
together and share in the glory of little smokies and jalapeño poppers while
laughing one moment and crying the next (all while subconsciously remembering
to immediately run to the stores and buy everything you saw in the ads as soon
as the game ends). It’s when the greatest stars of music put on the biggest
shows with the most resplendent costumes and ride spectacular giant mechanical
beasts. It’s when a wardrobe malfunction is seen by 143.6 million viewers
worldwide and is actually sometimes known as “Nipplegate”. And it’s the only
time all year (that I can think of) that an entire industry rallies together to
create the best work they could possibly make for one thirty second moment in
time.
So, although I’ve lived in the UK for three years, I think
this is what makes the Super Bowl special: you don’t have to know the players
or even like the game to feel included. I’ve now watched some football (or
soccer as I knew it), rugby, and even some cricket. I even watched some of the
Rugby World Cup which was, obviously, a huge deal for England as the hosts this
past year. Maybe it’s because there were
so many matches (the format is just so different), or maybe it was that I
simply didn’t understand the game (though my husband was very explicit in
explaining the rules), but, I think, it really came down to the fact that there
wasn’t something in it for me, too. And of course that’s only one person’s two
cents in the matter but, to many Americans, Super Bowl Sunday is one of their
very favourite days of the year. Perhaps another way to bring it home to the
people in the UK is that the Super Bowl is like having the Olympics every year
but it doesn’t mess up travel plans and you only have to commit for one
afternoon.
So, how can Europeans get in on the Super Bowl hype? Well, being in the ad industry, you have a really good chance of making an emo kid join the rest of her family for some delicious snacks full of saturated fats and goodness. And, even if you haven’t yet gotten a seat at the Super Bowl prime time ad table this season, I suggest you stay up late this Sunday evening anyway (game starts at 23:30) and watch the Broncos beat the Panthers … or at least watch until halftime is over. Mad Ruffian is having a Super Bowl party next Sunday the 7th of Feb in London. Game starts at 23:30. Email me if you want to come!