The Super Bowl Experience at Georgia World Congress Center for Super Bowl LIII.

The Super Bowl Experience (formerly the NFL Experience) is an annual event which has been held since 1992 at a venue in the host city of the Super Bowl. The event is described as an interactive "theme park",[1][2] featuring various fan-oriented attractions, including football-related activities and autograph sessions with current and former players.[1] Proceeds from the sale of Super Bowl Experience tickets go to fund the NFL's Youth Education Town (YET) initiative, which constructs facilities (typically in low-income neighborhoods of Super Bowl host cities) offering afterschool programs for youth.[3][4] Tickets to this event are free and can be assessed at the OnePass App on the NFLs main website.[5]

In November 2017, the NFL opened an NFL Experience attraction at New York City's 20 Times Square, in collaboration with Cirque du Soleil, which featured a similar array of interactive experiences and memorabilia. Consequently, the NFL began to refer to the travelling event as the Super Bowl Experience beginning in 2018 for Super Bowl LII in Minneapolis–Saint Paul. The Times Square venue was short lived, closing only just over a year later due to underperformance.

History

The first NFL Experience was held at the Minneapolis Convention Center in January 1992 prior to Super Bowl XXVI. The NFL's interactive theme park was followed by Major League Baseball's first "FanFest" in San Diego, California six months later.

The NFL Experience was not held for Super Bowl XLVIII. Instead, the NFL organized an outdoor festival known as Super Bowl Boulevard along Broadway and Times Square in New York City, which featured a similar array of fan-oriented events and attractions (such as an artificial toboggan hill).[6][7][8] As a tie-in for its tenth annual Puppy Bowl special (which traditionally airs on the day of the Super Bowl), Animal Planet hosted a "Puppy Bowl Experience" at the nearby Discovery Times Square exhibition space.[9]

The 2017 NFL Experience was hosted at George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston. The Houston Super Bowl Host Committee also hosted its own outdoor festival, Super Bowl Live, in the adjacent Discovery Green park, which featured entertainment events.[10][11]

For Super Bowl LII, the event was renamed the Super Bowl Experience.[12][1]

The Super Bowl LV experience was held at Julian B. Lane Riverfront Park, with capacity and health protocols in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[13]

Besides the Super Bowl Experience at the Phoenix Convention Center, the Arizona Super Bowl Host Committee also hosted its own outdoor festival, Super Bowl Live, at Margaret T. Hance Park, which featured local entertainment.[14]

Events

Super Bowl Dates Venue Ref
XXVI January 24–27, 1992 Minneapolis Convention Center [15]
XXVII 1993 Rose Bowl [16]
XXVIII January 26–30, 1994 Georgia World Congress Center [17]
XXIX 1995 Joe Robbie Stadium [18]
XXX January 24–27, 1996 Sun Devil Stadium [19]
XXXI January 23–26, 1997 New Orleans Morial Convention Center [20]
XXXII January 22–25, 1998 Qualcomm Stadium [21]
XXXIII January 22–24, 1999 Pro Player Stadium [22]
XXXIV January 27–30, 2000 Georgia World Congress Center [23]
XXXV January 20–21 and January 25–28, 2001 Raymond James Stadium [24]
XXXVI January 30 – February 3, 2002 New Orleans Morial Convention Center [25]
XXXVII January 18–19 and January 23–26, 2003 Embarcadero Marina Park South [26][27]
XXXVIII January 29 – February 1, 2004 George R. Brown Convention Center [28]
XXXIX January 29 – February 6, 2005 JEA Park [29]
XL February 1–5, 2006 Cobo Hall [30]
XLI January 27, 2007 – February 4, 2007 Dolphin Stadium [31]
XLII January 26–27 and January 31 – February 2, 2008 University of Phoenix Stadium [32]
XLIII January 24 – February 1, 2009 Raymond James Stadium [33]
XLIV 2010 Miami Beach Convention Center
XLV January 27–30 and February 2–6, 2011 Dallas Convention Center [34]
XLVI January 27 – February 4, 2012 Indiana Convention Center [35]
XLVII January 30 – February 3, 2013 New Orleans Morial Convention Center [3]
XLVIII Not held[8]
XLIX January 24 – February 1, 2015 Phoenix Convention Center [3]
50 January 30 – November 7, 2016 Moscone Center [36]
LI January 28–29 and February 1–5, 2017 George R. Brown Convention Center [37]
LII January 27–29 and January 31 – February 3, 2018 Minneapolis Convention Center [38]
LIII January 26 – February 2, 2019 Georgia World Congress Center [39][40]
LIV January 25–26, January 29 – February 1, 2020 Miami Beach Convention Center [41]
LV January 29–31 and February 3–6, 2021 Julian B. Lane Riverfront Park [42]
LVI February 5–6 and February 10–12, 2022 Los Angeles Convention Center [43][44]
LVII February 4–5 and February 9–11, 2023 Phoenix Convention Center [45]
LVIII February 7–10, 2024 Mandalay Bay Convention Center [46]
LIX February 5–8, 2025 New Orleans Morial Convention Center [47][48][49]
LX February 3–7, 2026 Moscone Center [50][51]

NFL Experience Times Square

On November 30, 2017, the NFL opened an attraction known as NFL Experience Times Square, within four ground-level floors of 20 Times Square in New York City. The 40,000 square-foot attraction was a collaboration with Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group, and featured various interactive activities and multimedia experiences, including a 4D film, a simulated locker room and practice area, displays of memorabilia, and a bar and restaurant that would feature a rotation of menu selections from NFL stadiums.[52][53][54][55] In February 2018, it was announced that NFL Network's Good Morning Football would move to a studio at the attraction in April, after having previously used a CBS studio in New York City.[56]

In September 2018, it was announced that the attraction would close, citing underperforming attendance numbers (which analysts pegged to poor promotion by the NFL, and high ticket prices). It was to remain open through at least the end of 2018.[57][58] Good Morning Football moved to SportsNet New York's facilities at 4 World Trade Center in November 2018.[59]

References

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  3. ^ a b c "NFL Experience". fanhospitality.com. Retrieved November 1, 2017. s
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