Super Bowl drives economic boon in the US ahead of game

The Super Bowl, the largest occasion in American soccer, is about for Sunday with the Seattle Seahawks dealing with the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

The large sporting occasion is about to energise followers in each cities and can ship 1000’s this 12 months to the San Francisco Bay Space. These unable to make the journey are nonetheless anticipated to spend closely on meals, drinks and watch events throughout the United States.

Traditionally, the Super Bowl has been a serious economic boon for host cities. For the Bay Space, the occasion is a component of a stretch of three main sporting spectacles lifting the regional financial system.

An area increase?

In 2024, the Bay Space Host Committee commissioned a report forecasting the economic affect of the 2025 NBA All-Star Game, the 2026 Super Bowl, and the FIFA World Cup, all happening in the area. The report estimated that Sunday’s game alone would generate between $370m and $630m in economic output for the Bay Space.

Final 12 months’s Super Bowl was hosted in New Orleans, Louisiana. State officers reported the occasion introduced in 115,000 guests who spent $658m in the metropolis.

For customers, Financial institution of America estimates a 77 p.c leap in spending close to the stadium. A examine analysing spending patterns from Super Bowl video games between 2017 and 2025 discovered that, on game day, spending surged in the postal code closest to the stadium, with the largest surge in meals and parking prices.

Internet hosting the game does include its personal bills for cities.

In the case of Santa Clara, it’s small in contrast with the forecasted output. Final 12 months, it was projected the metropolis would value them $6.3m, which incorporates coaching personnel for the inflow of guests and different logistical wants. Nonetheless, different video games have value municipalities rather more. When Atlanta hosted the Super Bowl in 2019, it value the metropolis an estimated $46m.

In 2023, the day after the game, which was performed in Glendale, Arizona, outdoors of Phoenix, was the single busiest at Phoenix Sky Harbor worldwide airport in its historical past, with greater than 200,000 passengers passing by the airport, which is a hub for American Airways and the place finances carriers Southwest Airways and Frontier preserve a big presence.

Different cities have used main sporting occasions to kick off large-scale infrastructure initiatives. In 2004 – ahead of the Super Bowl in Houston, Texas – METRO, the metropolis’s transit authority, launched its first gentle rail line only a month earlier than the game. The road, now one of three in the system, runs from downtown Houston to the metropolis’s soccer stadium.

Previous to its launch, Houston was the solely main metropolitan metropolis in the US and not using a rail system.

However not all infrastructure initiatives paid off. Las Vegas constructed Allegiant Stadium in the neighbouring suburb of Paradise when the metropolis acquired the Raiders soccer group from Oakland throughout the 2020 season. A 12 months later, in 2021, Las Vegas received the bid to host the 2024 Super Bowl. The stadium value $1.9bn. Almost $750m got here from lodge taxes, however the relaxation was shouldered by native taxpayers.

“The economic advantages are comparatively short-term, not simply in length, but additionally in scope. They’re restricted to sure industries and particular areas,” Michael Edwards, a professor of sport administration at North Carolina State College, informed Al Jazeera.

“The NFL [National Football League] typically makes use of the Super Bowl as a carrot to encourage cities to take a position taxpayer cash in new stadiums. You’re seeing that dynamic play out in locations like Chicago and Cleveland, the place officers are contemplating domed stadiums. Half of that push is sort of actually pushed by the chance of internet hosting a Super Bowl, which the league dangles as an incentive,” Edwards stated.

Meals spending

For many who can’t make it to the game itself, there’s nonetheless a surge in People heading to bars and eating places to observe the game or spending cash throwing a watch occasion.

The Nationwide Retail Federation, which has been monitoring Super Bowl spending for the final decade, expects that People will spend a report $20.2bn, or $94.77 per individual, on the large game with 79 p.c of that on meals.

Spending has skyrocketed since 2021 when customers spent $13.9bn, or $74.55 per individual. Nonetheless, that dropped from $17.2bn in 2020 when the Super Bowl occurred a few month earlier than the COVID-19 lockdowns in the US started.

For these internet hosting a Super Bowl watch occasion at residence, it’s going to value greater than final 12 months to replenish on the quintessential game-day meals. Wells Fargo estimates that internet hosting 10 folks will value about $140 per individual, up from $138 final 12 months.

Rooster wings, a staple for soccer followers, are a vivid spot for wallets; costs are down 2.8 p.c in contrast with this time final 12 months. Potato chip costs are flat, however dips like salsa have jumped 1.7 p.c.

More healthy choices are getting costlier as properly for these choosing a veggie platter. Cherry tomatoes are up 2 p.c, celery has risen 2.6 p.c, and each broccoli and cauliflower are up 4 p.c. Beer costs are additionally climbing, up 1.3 p.c from a 12 months in the past.

Promoting hits data

The Super Bowl is airing on NBC with the community getting a lift in promoting spending for the large game. NBC bought out of promoting spots for the Super Bowl in September for a report $10m on common for a 30-second spot – up from $8m on common final 12 months when the video games aired on Fox.

NBC additionally advantages from a group of sporting occasions all participating in February that drive up promoting income, together with from the Winter Olympics. The opening ceremony is on Friday and can run till February 22. NBC has unique broadcasting rights for the Olympics in the US.

“With the resurgence of the Olympic motion, our strongest Sports activities Upfront in historical past, the early sell-out of Super Bowl LX, and the exceptional return of the NBA, NBCUniversal has solidified itself as a sports activities powerhouse, and types have taken discover,” Mark Marshall, chairman of NBCUniversal’s world promoting and partnerships, stated in a launch.

The final time the video games have been in the identical 12 months, again in 2024, the two occasions have been the most-watched occasions on linear tv.

On Wall Avenue, the looming sporting occasions set to air on NBC have despatched guardian firm Comcast’s inventory surging up greater than 4 p.c over the previous 5 days.