LAS VEGAS — Every year, most of the sports world watches the Super Bowl.
In the case of the 2024 Super Bowl, which was held at Allegiant Stadium three weeks ago, one foreign power took a particularly strong interest in the NFL’s high-profile game, in which the Kansas City Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers.
Australia’s National Rugby League (NRL) officials said their products were to be unveiled on the very grass where Patrick Mahomes performed his magic for the Chiefs in 21 days, so they would not be showing off their products on their respective TV or streaming channels. I was glued to my terminal.
The NRL will feature Manly Sea Eagles vs. South Sydney Rabbitohs and Brisbane Broncos vs. Sydney Roosters at Allegiant Stadium on Saturday night.
And the players from the four teams have not forgotten that they will be showcasing their talents on the same turf where the world’s biggest sporting event took place.
“It’s great to be playing on the same field as the Super Bowl a few weeks ago,” Rabbitohs forward Damian Cook told the Post. “The whole team watched the game together. There are a lot of NFL fans across the (NRL) league as well. As athletes, it’s special to play on the same ground.”
Cook has been an Eagles fan since he was a child and said he has only seen one live NFL game, a 49ers game at the old Candlestick Park.
“It’s unbelievable to be playing in a stadium that just hosted the Super Bowl,” Manly’s Aaron Woods told the Post. “This is my 14th year playing rugby league, and I never thought in my lifetime that I would be able to promote the sport I love so much in another country. It just goes to show that anything is possible.”
James Tedesco, who is also the captain of the Roosters and Australian national team Kangaroos, told the Post that he is a Chiefs fan, but not the one you might think, and that he is the frontrunner. .
“I didn’t know much about the NFL when I arrived at the Roosters in 2018, but a lot of the boys there love it and we all wore NFL jerseys during the pre-game ‘captain’s run. ,” Tedesco said. “So they said, ‘You’ve got to wear a jersey.'” One of his teammates said, “You’ve got to buy a Kareem Hunt jersey.” He’s a great running back to play for the Chiefs. ”
“So, I got Kareem Hunt’s jersey and after that year, he left the Chiefs and Mahomes came in. So, I was really lucky. I liked that color and from there Their dynasty has begun. Great timing. It may seem like a bit of a fad, but it was coincidence and timing.
“Ever since then, I’ve loved watching Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce go about their jobs, and now I’m watching guys like (running back Isaiah) Pacheco and (receiver) Laci Rice. is also a big fan of Christian McCaffrey, watching him play and the way he moves the ball.”
Tedesco said he watched the Super Bowl last month and thought, “Wow, we’re going to be sharing the same field with those guys.”
“We were watching the Super Bowl together as a team, so to see the moments that were created on that field with Mahomes and those guys, it’s going to be really cool for us to make some memories.” Deaf,” Tedesco said.
From a media perspective, Yvonne Sampson, a media personality for Fox, which broadcasts the NRL, said she would call this year’s Super Bowl “different” after learning that Fox’s NFL broadcast team would be doing the show from the same set they did last month. He said he was looking at it through the lens of
“Watching the Super Bowl under the brightest lights that sports can offer and seeing Allegiant Stadium really brought it into focus and made it a reality that we and our little rugby league would be on the same turf.” ”Sampson told the Post. “To be able to take our game, which started as a bit of a working-class offshoot of English rugby union, and bring rugby league to America and play it for premiership points with four box-office teams is amazing. It’s great for us too.” We have some of the biggest stars in the game on the team there, so we hope Americans are as excited about the game as we are. ”
Sampson seemed in awe of the way American television produces and broadcasts NFL productions.
“I think American sports broadcasting is a prime example of that,” she said. “It’s a box office hit. The way we bring the game to American sports fans is a very beautiful, sophisticated product. I was watching this show as a broadcaster, and I loved the bells and whistles, the tricks, the moves, the colors that were injected. I’m in awe of the entertainment value and how it allows people to sit in the comfort of their own homes and feel like they’re so close to the game.
“I watched the Super Bowl through a different lens, imagined a small rugby league team running onto the same field, and thought, ‘Oh my God, the actual grass at Allegiant Stadium, we’re on the bottom. ‘We will be standing on the same lawn of ‘the same bright light.’
“And because of our relationship with Fox Sports US, we will be using the Super Bowl set,” she continued. “We will be able to deliver the game of rugby league in a very sophisticated way that has never been seen before.”
Tickets for NRL matches are available; Purchased through Ticketmaster, prices start as low as $19, a huge difference from last month’s lowest face value for Super Bowl tickets ($950). Lower tier seats start at $39 and go up to $189 for club seats.
The first of two games begins at 9:30 p.m. ET; Streaming app “Watch NRL”.
The doubleheader will be aired on FS1 in the United States.
