49ers, Chiefs clash in ‘Sin City’ Super Bowl spectacular
LAS VEGAS, United States (AFP) —
The San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs clash in a blockbuster Super Bowl showdown here as Las Vegas stages the American sporting showpiece for the first time on Sunday.
The glittering gambling capital in the Nevada desert is crackling with anticipation ahead of an National Football League (NFL) championship game that has topped even the usual stratospheric levels of hype.
The romance between pop megastar Taylor Swift and the Chiefs’ charismatic Travis Kelce is just one of the storylines of a game that is expected to smash US television viewing records.
Swift will jet to ‘Sin City’ immediately after performing on the latest leg of her US$1 billion-grossing world tour in Tokyo on Saturday night to cheer on her beau Kelce.
The singer will be among a crowd of celebrities, VIPS, and high rollers packed into the 65,000-seat Allegiant Stadium to see if Kelce and the Chiefs can clinch a third Super Bowl crown in five seasons.
The Federal Aviation Administration estimates around 500 private jets will touch down in Las Vegas for the game, while local officials say more than 300,000 visitors have descended on the city for the Super Bowl weekend.
Roulette wheels and slot machines are doing a roaring trade, while blackjack tables in several casinos are staffed by dealers wearing NFL merchandise in a city once shunned by the league due to its association with gambling.
The horde of tourists will flock to nightclubs and celebrity-hosted watch parties being laid on, in addition to Las Vegas’s regular array of concerts featuring stars such as U2, Adele, Christina Aguilera, and Green Day.
Those fans lucky enough to have a ticket for the game, where R&B star Usher headlines the half-time show, have paid handsomely for the privilege.
The cheapest seats available on resale ticketing website Stubhub on Saturday came with a US$5,848 price tag, with the most expensive listed at US$196,875.
The American Gaming Association, meanwhile, projects that a record 67.8 million Americans — around a quarter of the country’s adult population — will place a bet on the Super Bowl, generating an estimated US$23.1 billion.
The sporting dimension of the occasion, which kicks off at 3:30 pm local time (6:30 pm Jamaica time), has all the ingredients of a classic.
The Chiefs are playing in their fourth Super Bowl in five seasons, hoping to cement their dynasty status with a third Vince Lombardi Trophy after wins in 2020 and 2023.
The franchise would also be the first team since the New England Patriots in 2003 and 2004 to win back-to-back Super Bowls — an achievement that Kelce is determined to match.
“That tier of teams who have won it [back-to-back] have gone down as some of the greats,” Chiefs icon Kelce said this week.
“I’ve wanted this more than I’ve ever wanted to win a Super Bowl in my life.”
Sunday’s game is also a repeat of the 2020 Super Bowl when Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes led a stirring fourth-quarter comeback with 21 unanswered points to beat San Francisco 31-20.
The 49ers, meanwhile, are chasing a sixth Super Bowl and their first since 1994-1995.
The 49ers emerged from the regular season with the best record in the NFC but survived nerve-shredding play-off games against the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions to book their ticket to Las Vegas.
Lining up against Mahomes for San Francisco will be quarterback Brock Purdy, playing only his second season in the league after being chosen by the 49ers with the last pick of the 2022 NFL Draft.
San Francisco Head Coach Kyle Shanahan, meanwhile, is aiming to end his long wait to finally get his hands on the Vince Lombardi Trophy in his third Super Bowl.
As well as the loss to Kansas City in 2020, Shanahan was the offensive coordinator when the Atlanta Falcons blew a 28-3 lead in the 2017 Super Bowl before losing to New England.
Shanahan insists, however, he is only thinking about the here and now rather than the narrative surrounding him as a Super Bowl nearly man.
“Narrative, good or bad, is just a narrative,” Shanahan said as Sunday’s game neared.
“I just don’t want regrets. I just want to do everything that makes sense to myself, that makes sense for our team.