This weekend is one of the highlights of the American sporting year with Superbowl 58 in Las Vegas. To try and understand just why it is so important in the States, KSN has been talking to the Gillingham owner Brad Galinson.

“American Football is the biggest sport and so you have the most fans,” he started to explain.

“The Superbowl has become a complete spectacle! There are some people who watch it just for the ads more than the game as they are very funny and very expensive, and then there’s the Half Time show!” 

“It is always like a mini concert and they do a really good job doing multiple songs in a fifteen-minute period. You have everything there for the “football fans,” there’s the ads and then the entertainment at half time, they really do a great job.” 

“I read somewhere too that people drive less on Superbowl Sunday than on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day,” Galinson laughed.  

“I actually think that you may be missing a trick in this country! I think that the pyramid with promotion and relegation makes the sport much more exciting, but much less viable business wise, but the spectacle side of it is much more difficult as there’s not a lot of time to put in and on all the light shows and advertising.” 

“The Premier League is starting to get it with the scoreboards and the lights so you could add a bit of the spectacle! But I also think that and American coming in wanting to add that spectacle to the English game is a bit presumptuous and it does not respect the traditions of the country and so I would not presume to want to push the traditions too hard.” 

“I found that you could push American expectations too far, too fast. You have got to be careful how much you introduce and how offensive it is to the traditions.” 

The Superbowl host city it is regularly reported as making millions of dollars from hosting the event – this year it’s Las Vegas that is hosting the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs.

“The weekend would have been sold out in Vegas because of the game, but of all the hosts that there have been, Vegas probably needed it the least for an impact.” Galinson said before continuing, “But it will be madness though as every hotel on and off “The Strip” will be absolutely packed and charging thousands of dollars a night, I am sure!” 

The two sides met in Superbowl 54 in 2019 in Miami with the Chiefs winning 31-20, but as the Gills owner told us, “It’s a different game as they are different teams now!” 

“I think it is one of the best Superbowls that you could have picked! It does not always happen this way, but these are the two best teams in the League.”

“The 49ers have more of a history as they had a huge hey-day decades ago with Joe Montana, Steve Young, Jerry Rice, and they used to win it seemed five in every ten years – a dynasty!”

“They have been rebuilding for a while and come close again! And then the Chiefs are the “new” guys with (Patrick) Mahomes and (Travis) Kelce – it is the two best, and it will be a fantastic game.” 

“Personally, I think the 49ers are the better team, Mahomes and Kelce are probably spectacular superstars, whilst San Francisco do not have any superstars like that, but they have a very well rounded, consistent, very good team… I do think it will be a really good game!” 

When pushed, Mr Galinson’s score prediction was 28-21 win for the 49ers… we shall see!

Can San Francisco win their sixth Superbowl title, but their first since the days of Young in the mid 1990’s?

Or will the Chiefs win their fourth title in the last five years and become the first team to win back-to-back titles since the New England Patriots won Superbowl 39 in 2005?