Is Super Bowl Sunday Our Secular Holiday?

Pop quiz: What are the 10 most-watched television broadcasts in American history? Here’s a hint: It’s the Super Bowl, again and again. In fact, of the top 20, 19 are the Super Bowl. The finale of “M.A.S.H.” is in there, too.

More than Just Football

On Sunday February 8 – Super Bowl Sunday – over 100 million people will tune in for the big game—and not just to see the NFL’s two best teams play. There’s the halftime show, which often features premier performances (past performers range from Michael Jackson and Prince to Lady Gaga and Beyonce). There are the commercials that go all-out to justify their multi-million-dollar price tags –  now estimated at between $7 million to $8 million.  The culture of watch parties, food, and drinking only add to the day’s holiday feel, and it’s everywhere. Just check out sites like Eventbrite with your zipcode and the phrase “Superbowl Watch Party” and see how many results you get! (Visit here to read Senior Planet’s step by step Eventbrite tutorial).

But what makes the Super Bowl must-see TV for so many, in a way that other cultural touchstones don’t? The Oscars are popular, but we as a nation are not eating 1.3 billion chicken wings, betting on the National Anthem, or ranking the ads during the Oscars.  The so-called “Superbowl Flu” struck an estimated 23 million last year on Super Bowl Monday, costing businesses some $3 billion in lost productivity.

Why The Super Bowl?

First, the Super Bowl is the title game of the most popular sport in America. Additionally, the game’s singular nature—one game, on one day—gives it a leg up on the “best-of-seven” formats of other championships. (In fact, that one game’s date and location are set years in advance.) And the NFL has masterfully added elements to Super Bowl Sunday that draw in everyone—a headline-grabbing halftime show; media access to culture, food, and music outlets; and celebrity-driven content for late-night shows, podcasts, and more.

In fact, experts point to the NFL’s decision-making and marketing as key to its rise. Its TV contract structure has turned regular-season regional rivalries into national events.

Tech and the Super Bowl

Technology has also played a crucial role in the Super Bowl’s expansion beyond hardcore football fans. The NFL’s streaming deals put the game on platforms like Paramount+ and Peacock, reaching cord-cutters who might not otherwise tune in. Social media turns every commercial and halftime moment into instant viral content. There’s been an explosion in fantasy football platforms hosted by Yahoo, ESPN, Sleeper and the NFL, among many others, driving increased attention to every matchup. Online and mobile betting apps have added another layer of engagement, although online sports betting is legal in only 32 states.

These partnerships, marketing decisions and celebrity appearances, experts say, have been key to the NFL’s rise. “The game was always a crossover event, but it has gotten bigger, and the halftime show is a big part of what propelled it once they got serious about top and timely acts,” says Judy Battista, a Senior National Columnist for NFL.com, who has covered the league for decades. “When they got U2 on short notice after 9/11, that really met the moment. And they’ve leaned into that.”

A National Event

In addition, there may be a collective, subconscious hunger for an event that we can all enjoy. “I think that the fact that everything is so splintered only enhances how big the Super Bowl is,” says Battista. “It’s one of the very few things that rises above all the noise and still gets everybody’s attention.”

And there’s an appetite for more. The NFL is considering expanding its season by another week, pushing the Super Bowl to the President’s Day weekend—with Monday a day off for many. Super Bowl Sunday would be, in effect, its own holiday.

And that’s the point. The NFL knows its football-obsessive fans and even casual sports aficionados will tune in. It’s everybody else they want.  “You don’t even have to care about football, right?” says Battista. “It’s an excuse to hang out with your friends, eat some food, and, hey, let’s watch this Kendrick Lamar concert here.”

YOUR TURN

How will you spend Super Bowl Sunday? Let us know in the comments!

Eric Goldschein is a writer based in Brooklyn, New York, specializing in real estate, business, technology, and sports. His work has appeared in Realtor.com, NerdWallet, Business Insider, and other national publications. A former NBA intern and sportswriter with over a decade of experience in journalism and content marketing, Eric specializes in turning complex topics into accessible stories for consumer audiences.