Super Bowl: rising star, journeyman, Bad Bunny take stage as Patriots, Seahawks face off
US sport’s biggest event features two teams nobody expected to reach NFL championship decider set to be shrouded in political controversy
The biggest event in American sports kicks off on Sunday (Monday 7.30am Hong Kong time) as the New England Patriots take on the Seattle Seahawks at a Super Bowl tinged by controversy over Bad Bunny’s half-time show.
More than 120 million Americans are expected to tune in for an annual pop culture nonpareil, which this year features two teams nobody expected to reach the NFL championship decider.
The Seahawks, boasting the league’s best defence, are the marginal favourites. But they come up against a Patriots team who know how to win.
New England are seeking a record seventh Lombardi Trophy at the 75,000-capacity Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, and their first since the departure of Tom Brady, widely considered the NFL’s greatest-ever player.
It is, according to bookmakers, the unlikeliest Super Bowl match-up of modern times. Both teams began the season with odds of 60-1 or worse to go all the way.
“We’re in great shape. Guys are in good spirits,” said Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald after Seattle’s final practice on Saturday.