The Super Bowl 2024
Your starter guide to American Football’s biggest matchup
It’s that time of year again — Super Bowl mania. As a UK American football fan, all those late nights and highlight catchups are worth it to see the whole spectacle of the two best teams in the National Football League slugging it out in a winner-takes-all affair. This year, especially, is more important, as my team are taking part for the first time since I was at university. Whenever I mention that I watch the sport, I always get told “it’s boring” or “it’s too long” or “I don’t understand what’s going on”. So, this year, I thought I would enlighten my readers, both my UK friends and my Medium subscribers, on the largest spectacle American football has to offer, and also a general guide to how the sport works.
Part 1 — The Super Bowl
Q. What is the Super Bowl?
A. The Super Bowl is the final game in the NFL season, which determines which of the 32 teams is crowned the champion. This year, it is the 58th Super Bowl, with it dating back to 1966.
Q. Where is it being held?
A. For this affair, the location is always picked early in the season, and this year it is being held at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, typically home to the Las Vegas Raiders, who did not make the game this year. However, if the team was to make it, they are allowed to play it at their own stadium.
Q. When is it taking place?
A. For the last 2–3 years, the game is held on the second Sunday of February, so this year it is the 11th of February. Kickoff occurs at 11:30pm UK time, and 6:30pm ET for comparison.
Q. What do the teams win?
A. As well as the typical monetary reward for winning a major trophy, the victor will receive the Lombardi Trophy, named after legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi, who won the first two Super Bowls and is considered one of the greatest coaches in American sports history. There are also rings given to each player to represent their wins, with former New England Patriots quarterback and potential greatest player of all time Tom Brady holding the most with 7.
Q. Who is the half-time performer?
A. One of the reasons I love the Super Bowl is the whole spectacle, which UK sports do not really have. As well as all the adverts at halftime, which can reveal movies, TV shows or games highly anticipated, there is always a half-time performance by a huge star. In the last few years, we have saw The Weeknd, Rihanna and Maroon 5, and this year sees the return of American singer-songwriter Usher.
Q. How do teams make it to the Super Bowl?
A. The League is separated into two sides, the NFC and the AFC. There are 4 teams in each division, and the winner of each division then heads to the playoffs, as well as “wildcards” who are the best of the rest. In terms of other sports, I would say it is most like the Champions League, as it involves a group stage and then knockouts to reach the finale.
Part 2 — The Teams Involved
Q. Who are the two teams involved?
A. This year, the two finalists are the Kansas City Chiefs, the champions of the American Football Conference (AFC), and the San Francisco 49ers, the champions of the National Football Conference (NFC).
Q. Who are the Kansas City Chiefs?
A. The Kansas City Chiefs are based in Kansas City, Missouri. In total, they have won 3 Super Bowls, including two in the last 4 years. Managed by legendary coach Andy Reid, the team are considered by many to be the next dominant force in the NFL, following the dynasty of the New England Patriots in the 2000s and until the late 2010s.
Q. Who are the players to watch?
A. When discussing the Chiefs, it is hard to look past the brilliance of their Quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, who due to his sheer ability and winning mentality, is now considered the face of the league and a future hall of famer, and who changed the trajectory of the Chiefs Franchise. His partner in crime, Tight End Travis Kelce, has caught headlines recently for his off field relationship with Taylor Swift, but his on field displays are really the reason why he is so revered. On the defensive side, Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed is arguably the best in his position in the current landscape of the NFL, and will be certainly a key factor to the Chiefs chances.
Q. Who are the San Francisco 49ers?
A. The San Francisco 49ers are based in the Bay Area of San Francisco, California, and are ran by Kyle Shanahan, a tactically excellent coach who is also the son of a famous coach in Mike Shanahan. The team was most successful in the 80s, winning four of their 5 Super Bowls during this period. However, the franchise are desperate to win their first Super Bowl in 30 years, having been in and around doing so for the last 6 years.
Q. Who are the players to watch?
A. In San Francisco, the story of Brock Purdy is one of the best in the last few years. Being picked last in the Draft 2 years prior, he is now an elite Quarter Back and a potential MVP candiate. His calm demeanour in the face of adversity is a vital skill for his position. The offence for the 49ers is stacked with weapons, such as Tight End George Kittle, Wide Receiver duo Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk, and Running Back Christian McCaffrey. Defensively, the 49ers have veteran Nick Bosa and newcomer Chase Young as Defensive Linemen, whose primary goal will be to sack Mahomes, who was not sacked once during their 2023 Super Bowl victory.
Q. Who are the favourites?
A. Currently, due to holding the better season record and the wide range of playmakers on both sides of the ball, my 49ers are favoured to beat the Chiefs for the Lombardi Trophy. However, it is known that the Chiefs bring their A-game on the biggest stages, so don’t be surprised if the Missouri outfit are crowned the victors.
Q. Who would you compare the teams to in Soccer terms?
A. Looking at the two teams, I think there is a pretty clear comparison to draw. The Kansas City Chiefs are the most dominant force in the past 8 years, and are the team to beat, similar to a Manchester City. The former tour de force, the New England Patriots, were the Manchester United, in that they dominated for a long time. The 49ers, on the other hand, are very similar to Liverpool, in that they are always in and around the titles but struggle to get over the line, finishing 3rd or 2nd frequently in the last 7 years.
Part 3 — General NFL Guide
Q. How long do the games last?
A. A game typically runs for 4 quarters of 15 minutes, split into two halves. Whilst the actual gametime is 1 hour, the games usually last around 3 hours, due to stoppages amongst other things.
Q. What is the objective?
A. The goal is to drive from one end of the field to the other to score a Touchdown, which is worth 6 points and an extra point for making a kick similar to rugby. There is also the chance to kick a field goal, which is worth 3 points but can be done from 50 yards away with the correct kicker.
Q. How does possession change hands?
A. When a team has possession, they have 4 attempts to move the ball 10 yards, failing which the ball is passed back to the other team at the exact spot the football ends up. There are some factors which can change the distance or the attempts, such as penalties to either team increasing/decreasing the distance or meaning an automatic first attempt or “down” is awarded.
Q. What are some of the offensive positions on the field?
A. The most important player is the quarterback, who is the person who receives the ball and either throws it to somebody or runs it themselves. There are wide receivers, who are the people that the quarterback tries to throw to, and running backs who are passed the ball to run with. There are also tight ends, who is a “jack of all trades", acting as either another offensive option or blocker depending on the play. The quarterback is protected by their offensive line, who block the quarterback to allow them to dictate play.
Q. What are some of the defensive positions on the field?
A. On the defensive side, the main area is the defensive line, who attack the offensive line to try and get to the quarterback to tackle or steal the ball. Included in this are the defensive tackles who play centrally, and the defensive ends who try and flank the quarterback on the sides of their “pocket". Away from the ball, we have the secondary, who attempt to stop passes and cover space, like zonal marking. The cornerbacks are the ones charged with stopping the wide receivers from, well, receiving, whilst the safety sits at the back and acts as the last man/sweeper.
Q. What are Special Teams?
A. Special teams deal with everything else. There is the kickoff team, who kick the ball to the other end to start play, and there is also a punting team, who kick the ball away when the team is at risk of losing it on downs. Finally, there is also the field goal team, who are charged with kicking the ball through the uprights, and can be the difference between agonising defeat and sweet victory.
