The Super Bowl and Arizona: What you should know about the state's experience with the big game

Super Bowl LVII: Big game expected to bring some big money to the Phoenix area

PHOENIX - The Super Bowl is an event many Americans look forward to each year (even if they are paying more attention to the commercials), but it often brings a lot of benefits to the metro area that is hosting the big game.

A number of metro areas in the U.S. have played host to the Super Bowl multiple times, and that includes Phoenix, which is the only metro area in Arizona to have hosted the Super Bowl.

Here's what you should know about Arizona's history with the football tournament.

How many times has Arizona hosted the Super Bowl?

Including the 2023 Super Bowl, Arizona has hosted the Super Bowl four times.

The state hosted the big game in 1996, 2007 and 2015. Arizona also came close to hosting the Super Bowl in 1993.

You said Arizona came close to hosting the Super Bowl in 1993. What happened?

According to a 1991 article by the Associated Press, the 1993 Super Bowl was stripped from Arizona because of the state's controversy with Martin Luther King Day.

The game, according to the article, was awarded to the Phoenix area in 1990, but soon after the decision, one of the NFL team owners said he would work to have the game removed if Arizona did not approve a holiday to honor the late civil rights leader.

Arizona's controversy with Martin Luther King Day began in 1987. According to an AP article published that year, the state's governor at the time, Evan Mecham, canceled the holiday, which was created by way of an executive order issued by Mecham's predecessor, Bruce Babbitt.

Babbitt declared MLK Day a holiday in 1986.

Canceling MLK Day, according to the AP article, was an action that Mecham promised to make during his gubernatorial campaign. Mecham said Babbitt's executive action was illegal. In addition, Mecham said no other American, including King, rated having a holiday alongside George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.

Mecham's action resulted in condemnation from other politicians and civil rights leaders, as well as other Arizona residents.

Arizona was later awarded the 1996 Super Bowl on a tentative basis, with the condition the state passes a referendum on making MLK Day a state holiday. Documents on the Arizona Secretary of State's website state that a ballot measure to create an MLK Day state holiday, while combining the Lincoln Day and Washington Day holidays into President's Day, made it onto the November 1992 ballot as Proposition 300. That measure was approved by voters.

Where were the Super Bowl games held in Arizona?

All Super Bowl games in Arizona were played in the Phoenix area.

Super Bowl XXX in 1996 featured the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe.

Besides the 2023 game, two other games were played at what is now known as State Farm Stadium:

Super Bowl XLII: New York Giants defeat New England Patriots
Super Bowl XLIX: New England Patriots defeat Seattle Seahawks

Have the Cardinals ever played a Super Bowl game in Arizona?

The Arizona Cardinals have made one Super Bowl appearance. It happened in 2009, a year after Arizona hosted Super Bowl XLII.

In Super Bowl XLIII, which was played in Tampa, Fla., the Cardinals lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Is it common for an NFL team to play the Super Bowl on home turf?

The past two Super Bowl games, in 2021 and 2022, featured teams that played on home turf, with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers playing at their home stadium, and the Los Angeles Rams playing at theirs. Both teams also won the Super Bowl on home turf.

Those two games were also the only two games in Super Bowl history where a team played the Super Bowl at their home stadium.

While it is a rare occurrence for an NFL team to play the Super Bowl on home turf, there have been a number of instances where an NFL team played the Super Bowl in their home state, but not at their home stadium. Not counting 2021 and 2022, this situation happened four times:

Super Bowl XI in 1977 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. (Oakland Raiders, now Las Vegas Raiders)
Super Bowl XIV in 1980 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. (Los Angeles Rams)
Super Bowl XIX in 1984 at the Stanford Stadium in Stanford, Calif. (San Francisco 49ers)
Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003 at the Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, Calif. (Oakland Raiders, now Las Vegas Raiders)

How will the Super Bowl benefit Arizona's economy?

The Super Bowl gives host cities global visibility, as well as other economic benefits.

For 2023's Super Bowl, experts with Visit Phoenix say it should bring in about $600 million to the local economy. Other experts, however, are predicting an economic impact of $1 billion or more.

"We were very excited," said Eric Kerr, Vice President of Insights and Development with Visit Phoenix.

Kerr has been working non-stop to market and promote the city, ever since it was announced five years ago that the Super Bowl will return to Arizona.

"So, we've been really kind of tracking the teams that have been doing well, making sure that we are doing some digital marketing and promotions in markets that we feel have the opportunity to make the Super Bowl, so some Midwest and East Coast teams," said Kerr.

In the weekend leading up to Super Bowl Week, some businesses say they had their busiest weekend ever.

"Crazy, yeah. They're down here. They're all here," said Tammie Coe, who owns a pizza place called ‘Hot Daisy' along Roosevelt Row in Downtown Phoenix. "I expect this whole entire week to be just nutso."

What kind of an impact did the last Super Bowl have on Arizona?

During Super Bowl XLIX, Kerr said the game brought $720 million in total economic impact to Arizona.

"Direct spending in the destination was over $500 million, and that trickles down into tax revenues for city, state, and county that can then pay for public services," said Kerr.

For the 2015 Super Bowl, over 121,000 visitors came to the Phoenix area. For the Saturday before the game, hotel occupancy was 95%, the seventh highest ever for the area.

For the Monday after the 2015 Super Bowl, Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport saw its busiest day ever, with over 180,000 passengers. Rental car centers also saw a boost, with around 12,000 rental cars that were scheduled to be returned, which is triple tje usual numbers.

So, some are predicting less money this time around for Arizona. Why?

The dollar amount, according to some estimates, will be less for the 2023 Super Bowl because the Pro Bowl will not take place in the Phoenix area this time around.

The 2023 Pro Bowl Game is scheduled to take place in Las Vegas, Nev.

"It was an opportunity to showcase the destination. We are always looking to book events years and years in advance, and so, to have something this big on the books, five years ahead of time is a major opportunity for the market," said Kerr.

Are officials doing anything to promote the state during the big game?

Super Bowl LVII: Officials working to ensure the big game leaves a lasting, positive impact on Arizona

2023's Super Bowl is expected to have a huge economic benefit for Arizona, but some are asking what can be done to ensure the game leaves a lasting impact on Arizona. FOX 10's Steve Nielsen spoke with Gov. Katie Hobbs about that.

Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) said her job during Super Bowl week is to convince CEOs to move to Arizona.

"I think there's been a long time of work, planting seeds, and this is part of the effort to do that," said Gov. Hobbs.

We also asked Gov. Hobbs about how the state is presenting itself to the rest of the U.S. and the world amid various problems, such as things being stolen at the Super Bowl Experience

"I know law enforcement is laser-focused on making sure this event is a safe event, which will mean its successful, and I don't mean just the game itself, but the related activities, and they want to make sure were keeping visitors and participants safe," said Gov. Hobbs, who went on to say that there are no known safety threats against the state at this time, based on information she has.

We also asked Gov. Hobbs about whether the region's homelessness problem could present challenges to how the state presents itself to the world at large during the Super Bowl.

"I'm concerned about homelessness in general, and it's not going to go away because we cleaned up this park, and our state leaders need to do more about this issue as a whole," said Gov. Hobbs. "You cant just hide it and say its not part of the situation that we're in."

Super Bowl and Arizona: Commerce Authorities to wine and dine CEOs

Meanwhile, dozens of CEOs are headed to Arizona on the morning of Feb. 9, where they will be wined and dined for the Big Game, as the state gives them the best sales pitch to open up shop in Arizona.

According to officials with the Arizona Commerce Authority, they will entertain 70 CEOs from across the world, and the companies are involved in the semiconductor, automotive, battery, and advanced manufacturing sectors.

"We've invited global leaders who we believe would have a successful operation here in Arizona," said Sandra Watson.

Watson said the Super Bowl fun is a perfect way to develop a relationship with these worldwide companies.

"It is an opportunity to develop that relationship, create the foundation, and ultimately, when they are looking for a new location, Arizona becomes a location of choice," said Watson.

"I would say it lays the foundation, helps tee it up now, pun intended, at the [WM Phoenix Open], and drives that conversation," said Phil Gallagher, Avnet's CEO.

Officials say it is not the first time the state is trying to convince businesses to open operations in Arizona: it happened during the Super Bowl in 1996, and the state convinced Avnet to open up shop in the Grand Canyon State. It also happened during the Super Bowl in 2015, when the Commerce Authority hosted 60 CEOs. 20 of those CEOs of since opened facilities in Arizona, creating 18,000 jobs, and $2 billion in capital expenditures.

Avnet officials say they will work with the Commerce Authority to make a pitch to the companies. Gallagher believes the success seen in 2015 can be recreated.

"I think some are in the throes of final decisions," said Gallagher.

Who's hosting the Super Bowl after Arizona is done hosting it this year?

It was decided in 2021 that the Allegiant Stadium in the Las Vegas area will play host to Super Bowl LVIII on Feb. 11, 2024.

Originally, 2024's Super Bowl was to be played in New Orleans, but according to NFL.com, a change was made because of a scheduling conflict with Mardi Gras.

New Orleans will host the Super Bowl on Feb. 9, 2025. Mardi Gras is set to take place on March 4 in 2025, thus alleviating the issue of a scheduling conflict.