The Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots play the Super Bowl on Feb. 8.Chris Graythen/Getty Images
Eleven years ago, Taylor Swift dominated the charts, The Hunger Games franchise movie was coming to theatres and the New England Patriots faced the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl.
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And it’s all happening again, as New England and Seattle battle to be the NFL’s top team. Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Sunday’s game, with the Seahawks looking for redemption and the Patriots looking to run back their win.
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What teams are playing in the Super Bowl?
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) celebrates with fellow quarterbacks Drew Lock, left, and Jalen Milroe, right, after a win over the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship NFL football game.Lindsey Wasson/The Associated Press
The AFC champions, the New England Patriots, are taking on the NFC champions, the Seattle Seahawks. It’ll be a rematch of the 2015 Super Bowl, where Tom Brady’s Patriots came out on top. The Patriots could claim their seventh title with a win Sunday, breaking a tie with the Pittsburgh Steelers for the most championships in league history.
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This time around, the coaching staff will be in a battle of the Mikes: Mike Vrabel in his inaugural season as the Patriots’ head coach, and Mike Macdonald in his sophomore year as the Seahawks’ head coach. Both teams went 14-3 in the regular season, and didn’t face each other.
Both starting quarterbacks will also be making their Super Bowl debut. Drake Maye, the Patriots’ signal caller, is in his sophomore NFL season. Sam Darnold, the Seahawks quarterback, broke out last season on the Minnesota Vikings before signing a three-year contract with Seattle as a free agent this past off-season.
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For those who are just joining for the NFL season’s final sprint, here are the fundamentals of the game:
When a team has the ball, they will attempt to either run or throw the football down the 100-yard-long field in hopes of getting it into the end zone, thus scoring a touchdown, which is worth 6 points (a successful extra point kick after the touchdown would make it 7).
The other team will seek to stop their opponent by either tackling the player with the ball, knocking the ball to the ground or intercepting the ball.
Teams have sets of offensive and defensive players. When a team has the ball, their offensive players take the field, pushing forward and protecting the player with the ball.
The team without the ball has its defensive players take the field, attempting to stop their opponents from advancing. The team with the ball has four chances (called “downs”) to move 10 yards down the field.
If they successfully advance 10 yards, the number of downs resets. If they fail, the ball must go to the other team.
Can Canadians see the American Super Bowl ads?
Canadian federal regulations permit “simultaneous substitution” for broadcasts. That allows the holder of the domestic telecast rights – in this case, Bell Media – to swap in ads made just for the Canadian market. Last year’s commercials included an uptick in Canadian patriotism across various domestic brands, including Kraft Heinz Canada and Tim Hortons.
In 2016, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission said that American Super Bowl ads were integral to viewing the game and Bell Canada wasn’t allowed to “simsub.” From 2017 to 2019, Bell Canada couldn’t sell their own ads and had to broadcast the American ads.
Bell Canada sued the federal government for the CRTC’s ruling, with the case escalated to the Supreme Court of Canada. The Supreme Court overturned the CTRC’s ruling, saying the federal government didn’t have the power to ban “simsub” for the Super Bowl.
Canadians can still watch American ads, but will need to search for them online.
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When and where is the Super Bowl?
The Super Bowl will be at Levi's Stadium, home of the San Francisco 49ers.Godofredo A. Vásquez/The Associated Press
The NFL’s biggest game of the season is in Santa Clara, Calif. this year, on Sunday, Feb. 8. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET, and the venue - Levi’s Stadium - is home to the San Francisco 49ers.
Where can I watch the Super Bowl in Canada?
The Super Bowl will be airing on Bell Media-owned channels and websites, including CTV and TSN. DAZN Canada also owns the rights to the broadcast, and it can be streamed on their site.
Who is the performing at the halftime show?
Bad Bunny is the Super Bowl halftime show performer.Jordan Strauss/The Canadian Press
Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny is headlining this year’s Super Bowl halftime show. The rapper just won album of the year at the Grammys, becoming the first Spanish-language album to win the night’s highest honour. Bad Bunny previously shared the stage with Shakira during the 2020 halftime show.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said Monday that the singer was “one of the great artists in the world,” and someone who could “unite people and to be able to bring people together.”
Rock band Green Day will be performing in the opening ceremonies, and singer Charlie Puth will do a rendition of the American national anthem.
Is President Donald Trump going to the Super Bowl?
Trump has said that he will not be attending this year’s game. He attended last year’s edition, watching Jalen Hurts’ Philadelphia Eagles beat Patrick Mahomes’ Kansas City squad in New Orleans.
The president has expressed disdain for Bad Bunny, calling the Puerto Rican a “terrible choice” for the Super Bowl. Bad Bunny has repeatedly criticized Trump’s administration throughout the years, from the U.S.’s hurricane response in Puerto Rico to the treatment of immigrants. The singer refused to come to the U.S. during his latest tour, citing fears that fans could be targeted by immigration agents.
Bad Bunny blasted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement at the Grammys after accepting the award for best música urbana album.
“Before I say thanks to God, I’m going to say ICE out,” Bad Bunny said Sunday. “We’re not savage, we’re not animals, we’re not aliens. We are humans and we are Americans.”
— With files from Simon Houpt and the Associated Press