When NFL training camps start for all teams in the hot summer weather of July, each team sets a goal of making it not only to the playoffs, but to be playing in the cooler weather of February in the Super Bowl.
Regretfully, only two teams will be playing in this February game and only one team will be holding the Lombardi Trophy when it is all said and done.
However, that one team who is holding the Lombardi Trophy will be standing on the biggest stage in sports, in front of most of America and will be talked about for days and months after.
The road to the Super Bowl is a tough one, played in all types of climates throughout the season, which can greatly impact the game being played.
If it is raining, it makes it difficult for teams to hold onto the ball.
If it is cold and snowing, it makes it difficult for teams to be effective in any phases of the game like they normally would.
If it is hot and humid, it makes it difficult for the players to remain hydrated.
All these factors can impact what happens in that game and who wins, which over the course of the season, can impact if the team starts the journey into the playoffs to get to the Super Bowl.
Therefore, it would be tragic, or pretty much a factor not relating to the play of the teams, an outside source, if one of these factors – rain, snow, cold, heat, humidity – came into play in the Super Bowl and impacted the outcome of the biggest game of the NFL’s season.
In order to prevent these factors the Super Bowl is played most of the time at a location when at that time of year, February, there is a highly unlikely probability that one of these factors will impact the game.
So now you ask, if the game is going to be played in a stadium and environment where the weather likely will not have an impact on the game, where is the game normally played?
You would think indoors, would be a safe bet, which it has been played inside, but the Super Bowl has also been played outside, but where has it been played the most times? How many different states has the Super Bowl been played?
First, you have to take into consideration for an inside game, how many times has this happened?
Your answer, out of the forty-nine Super Bowl games played already, almost half have been played indoors, for a total of seventeen times.
The indoor stadiums:
- Georgia Dome (Georgia) – twice
- Metrodome (Minnesota) – once
- Reliant (NRG) Stadium (Texas) – once
- Cowboys Stadium (Texas) – once
- Pontiac Silverdome (Michigan) – once
- Ford Field (Michigan) – once
- Superdome/Louisiana Superdome/Mercedes-Benz Superdome (Louisiana) – seven times
- Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis) – once
- University of Phoenix Stadium (Arizona) – twice
Now, for an outside game, that means the thirty-two times, the game has been played outside.
- Memorial Coliseum (California) – twice
- Rose Bowl (California) – five times
- Stanford Stadium (California) – once
- Jack Murphy Stadium/Qualcomm Stadium (California) – three times
- Orange Bowl (California) – five times
- Tampa Stadium/Raymond James Stadium (California) – four times
- Joe Robbie Stadium/Pro Player Stadium/Dolphin Stadium/Miami Gardens (Florida) – five times
- Alltel Stadium/EverBank Field (Florida) – once
- Met Life Stadium (New Jersey) – once
- Rice Stadium (Texas) – once
- Tulane Stadium (Louisiana) – three times
- Sun Devil Stadium (Arizona) – once
Now how many different states you ask? That’s fifteen, with Florida taking the honors. What is unique though? The Super Bowl has never been played in San Francisco, where it is being played this year.
So essentially what it boils down to is that if the game is going to be played indoors, it will likely be played in Louisiana, in the Superdome. This makes sense because New Orleans, where the Superdome is located, is a favorable location for tourists.
If the game is outside, likely any stadium in Florida is where the Super Bowl will be held, which makes sense because in February the climate is ideal weather to play football.
But now the big question, where would you like to watch a Super Bowl game?
