A Bigger and Better Meadowlands Puts in Bid to Host Super Bowl XLVIII
Walk around the parking lot on game day and poll the crowd if a new stadium was necessary. Albeit a Giants or Jets home game, you probably would be able to split the total down the middle, with a lot of the 'no' votes the result of an added influx of traffic and diversions due to the construction going on the past two seasons.
Yes, Giants Stadium (or the Meadowlands, depending on whether the place is green or blue that day) has been around since 1976 but was still viewed as a fairly decent place to take in a football game. But it seemed as if nearly all of the nine professional teams around the area had new venue fever at the same time. Once the Jets' dream of becoming Manhattanites didn't materialize, they decided to snub Queens and be content again sharing a building with their current landlord.
With the grand opening scheduled for the 2010 season, the new Meadowlands - or whatever corporate name will be attached to it - should be an impressive place on any given Sunday, but what about during the month of February?
The only time that even a mention of hosting a Super Bowl in New Jersey was heard after the September 11 tragedy, and that was basically a gesture for what had taken place not too far away from East Rutherford. But now that is being revisited once again, and this time it may be more than just a wish.
The New Meadowlands Stadium Company received the approval of the NFL owner's Super Bowl Advisory Committee to put their name in the hat. This came even though there is a traditional requirement for a minimum expected temperature of 50 degrees for an outdoor stadium. How it was explained was the approval came with the understanding that the 'bid would be a unique, once-only circumstance based on the opportunity to celebrate the new stadium and great heritage and history of the NFL in the New York region.'
The next step is for the group to send a preliminary proposal to the league by April 1 and the official announcement will come by the end of the following month. A total of four stadiums will be in the mix, so having a 25 percent chance on getting the nod is better than nothing.
"It's time for the biggest game in football to be played on the biggest stage in the world," said Bid Committee Chairmen Woody Johnson and Jonathan Tisch of the Jets and Giants, respectively. "We are confident that the appeal and prestige of the New York City metropolitan area, coupled with the innovative capabilities of our brand new, state-of-the-art facility, can provide a unique and exciting experience for the teams and fans, as well as the entire league and the sport of football. And, of course, we would love to bring the Super Bowl - and its significant economic benefits - to New York and northern New Jersey."
This will be an impressive stadium, no doubt. The seating capacity will be 82,500, which will be the third largest in the NFL. Four 30 X 188-foot HD video screens will be in each of the stadium's corners to accent the facility. And if things break right, they will be showing the lifting of the Lombardi Trophy in 2014.