Feb 8, 2024 By Gary Boatman 3 min read

This week is the nation’s unofficial national holiday, the Super Bowl.

This year’s version is the 58th. Of course, our six-time champion Steelers will not be a part of the festivities. Although the Terrible Towels will not be present, most Pittsburghers will still be watching. If you wanted to buy a ticket on the secondary market, many are selling for more than $6,000. Premium seats are many times that price.

Tickets to the first Super Bowl averaged about $12. Wouldn’t you love that deal today? Even when adjusted for inflation, that would be about $100. Of course, if you were attending the game this week in Vegas, hotel costs skyrocket over normal rates. It is expensive, but it is the thrill of a lifetime.

Most of us will be watching on television. If you need to purchase a new, bigger television there are many deals on them despite our high inflation. No matter what TV you watch on, you will not be alone. The game is the highest watched show for the entire year. It is estimated that more than 110 million people will see it. Nine of the 10 most watched programs of all time are Super Bowls

Because of this large audience size, commercial spots cost around $7 million for a 30-second ad. Companies create special ads to catch the attention of viewers, and make them remember their product. They get so creative that some people claim they watch just for the commercials. This year there will be some new advertisers, and it is expected that more young girls will be in the audience. This is because of the Taylor Swift phenomenon. Most people know that Taylor has been dating Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce.

This year the halftime headliner is Usher. No expense is spared for props and back up performers. A lot more time is allowed for halftime than a normal game. Reportedly, the star performers do not get paid for their time. They get so much exposure that their record sales explode. This is much more valuable than their fee would be.

Super Bowl Sunday is also the second largest food consumption behind only Thanksgiving. Fans spend more than $50 million on food during the four days prior to the Super Bowl. It is estimated that 14,500 tons of chips will be eaten during the game. Sixty-nine million pounds of guacamole will be consumed on some of these chips. Chicken wings are another staple that cost less with a savings of 22%. These savings are important with the overall cost of food 11% higher than last year.

To wash all of this food down, there is an estimated 51,713,004 cases of beer sold for the Super Bowl. This is the 8th largest day of the year for beer consumption. This year shoppers will discover that the cost of pop is much higher than last year. The economy benefits from all of this consumption. It suffers some the next day when one in 10 people will call in sick to work on Monday.

The Super Bowl has become one of the biggest gambling days of the year. It is estimated that over $23 billion will be bet on the game. This money will come from about 68 million Americans or one out of every four. People will be placing bets not only on the outcome of the game, but many little elements such as who wins the coin flip. Do not eliminate the fun of the game by betting more than you can afford to lose. It could take a long time to recover financially from risky bets.

Enjoy the game!