Super Bowl 56 is a little over a month away, but the ongoing coronavirus pandemic could upend the carefully laid out plans to host the big game at the state-of-the-art SoFi Stadium – the newest jewel in the league’s crown.
Super Bowl 56 is set to get underway on Sunday, February 13, 2022, at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. BetUS sportsbook is offering a veritable buffet of NFL odds and props for the playoffs.
Is Super Bowl 56 in Los Angeles a Go?
Last week, Roger Goodell and the NFL were said to be weighing up their options against the backdrop of a surge in cases in California, according to several media outlets. It was alleged that the league was looking at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington as a potential backup location should the rapid rise in cases force the state of California’s hand and prevent the league from hosting Super Bowl in Tinseltown.
The 2021 #NFLPlayoffs are set! pic.twitter.com/Bv3d34ALBL
— NFL (@NFL) January 10, 2022
The concern that Los Angeles might enact new Covid-19 edits that would impact Super Bowl 56, fan attendance or both is no small matter. There’s also the whole hoopla that comes with the big game. Super Bowl isn’t just a game, it’s a two-week NFL theater that brings with it the buildup, celebration, media day, and more. And contingency plans are necessary.
Last year, California was amongst several states to usher in some of the toughest mandates in an abundance of caution against the coronavirus pandemic. The San Francisco 49ers, for example, were amongst those to feel the impact most severely, forced to play out the string of their 2020 NFL schedule in Glendale, Arizona.
Last week, the 2022 Grammy’s were postponed amid the surge in Omicron cases in California. It marked the second year that the Grammy’s were postponed, and no new date was announced. The 64th annual ceremony was set to take place on January 31.
Super Bowl 56 Unlikely To Be Moved
The latest media report to emerge is that the league will not move the big event from Los Angeles despite cases surging in California. Los Angeles county was reporting over 20,000 cases in the first week of January.
Katie Keenan, the NFL’s senior director of event operations assured the media that “All of our plans for Super Bowl week remain fully in place for a month from today.” Adding that the league is “working along with everyone here, with the L.A. County Health Department, to make sure all of our events are being held safely.”
The NFL was quick to downplay its interest in the AT&T Stadium, stressing that contingency planning was part and parcel of the planning process every single year. According to NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy, it’s standard protocol to contact a number of clubs and inquire about their stadium availability in the event of extreme weather or a whole slew of unforeseen circumstances that could upend an event.
