The Super Bowl might be the biggest event in America, and not just because it will crown the winner of the nation’s most popular pro sports league. We’re 24 hours away from kickoff between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, AZ, and it’s a good time to get caught up on all the information you need. Whether it’s the Super Bowl matchup, odds, any of the ridiculous prop bets, or even the halftime show, we’ve got you covered.
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The action on the field between the Patriots and Seahawks is just a small piece of the comprehensive entertainment package for Super Bowl Sunday.
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Of course, this year’s version of the NFL championship game is not without plenty of intriguing on-field matchups and interesting narratives. You’ve got two No. 1 seeds in the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks, with both teams chasing history. The Seahawks have a chance to become the first team to repeat as Super Bowl champs since the Patriots a decade ago. Tom Brady and Bill Belichick are looking for a fourth ring, which would tie them for the most all-time among quarterbacks and coaches, respectively.
But there's so much more entertainment to be consumed on Super Bowl Sunday beyond the action between the hashmarks. Katy Perry and Lenny Kravitz will rock the stage at halftime for what should be a spectacular concert in Glendale, Arizona. Both singers have a flair for the dramatic — Perry with her frivolous costumes and crazy visual effects and Kravitz with his grandiose '70s-rock-style anthems — so we should be set for a really fun show on Sunday night.
Turning back to the actual game, even those fans without a hometown rooting interest can stay engaged until the final whistle. Gambling on NFL games has been around for decades. But the betting action surrounding the Super Bowl takes it to a whole different level. More people bet on the Super Bowl than any other sporting event in the United States. Last year’s game took in a record $119 million dollars at Las Vegas sportsbooks and netted the casinos a record profit of $19.7 million.
The Patriots are pegged as 1-point favorites at most of the Vegas sportsbooks monitored by Oddsshark, although Seattle backers can still find a better line for their team at some of the online books. Bovada has the Seahawks as a 2-point underdog. The majority of the money on the game so far is being laid on New England, but recent trends suggest that might not be the best bet. Favorites are just 4-10-1 ATS in the last 15 Super Bowls, and the underdog has actually won the last three games straight up.
One of the reasons for the huge amount of gambling on the Super Bowl is that there are a ton of different betting options aside from picking the winner of the game. Most sportsbooks also offer Super Bowl prop bets, which can range from the normal (who will score first) to the weird (what will Katy Perry be wearing when she begins the halftime show). Nevada sportsbooks are restricted to offering only props that take place on the playing field and can be verified in the box score, so be sure to check out some of the online offshore books (such as Bovada) to find those exotic wagers that will keep you entertained even if the game is a blowout.
How to watch
Where: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
When: 6:30 p.m. ET
TV: NBC
Announcers: Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, Michele Tafoya
Odds
The Patriots are 1-point favorites, according to OddsShark.
Further reading
For more on the Patriots, check out Pats Pulpit. For additional coverage of the Seahawks, head on over to Field Gulls.
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