Super Bowl fever is everywhere, even on MetroCards.
Credit: MTA
- According to the Hass Avocado Board, this year alone 104 million pounds of avocados are expected to be consumed during the Big Game – that’s over 208 million Hass avocados: more than 230 times the weight of the Statue of Liberty.
- On Super Bowl Sunday each year, Westside Market NYC sells 1,500 lbs. of finger foods, 1,500 lbs. of chicken wings, 1,000 lbs of salsa, 800 lbs. of cookies and 800 fruit bowls.
- The arrival of Super Bowl XLVIII in the Greater New York area marks an influx of approximately 400,000 dedicated fans.
- The National Chicken Council estimates that 1.25 billion chicken wings will be consumed during the Super Bowl. Denver’s residents are 5 percent less likely to consume wings, while Seattle is 44 percent below the average. This year represents the 50th anniversary of the “Buffalo Wing.”Almost 57 percent of Americans who eat chicken wings say they like to dip their wings ranch dressing. Only about 35 percent go for the bleu cheese dressing – unless you live in Northeast, where it’s nearly 50 percent.
- Super Bowl Sunday is the busiest day of the year for pizza restaurants, according to the National Restaurant Association. In fact, chains Papa John’s, Pizza Hut and Domino’s will sell twice as many pies as they do on any other day.
- Americans will eat about 3.8 million pounds of popcorn while watching the big game, according to the Calorie Control Council. If you skip the butter, it could be one of the day’s healthiest snacks.
- Twenty-six percent of Americans pray for God to help their team, 25 percent think their team has been cursed, and 19 percent more generally believe God is involved in determining who wins on the court or in the field. Overall, half of Americans fall into one of these groups, according to the Public Religion Research Institute .
- MediaLife says that $1.85 billion has been spent on Super Bowl advertising over the past 10 years.
- CBS chief Les Moonves says that some of Sunday’s 30-second ads cost$4 million. That’s up from $3.5 million last year.
- This year, players on the winning team will receive a $92,000 bonus, a 6 percent increase over last year. Players on the losing team will receive $49,000. Individual players may also have additional Super Bowl bonuses written into their contracts, according to the IB Times.
