
While the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers are busy preparing for Super Bowl LIV, workers at Hard Rock Stadium are getting a brand-new field ready for the big game.
“We put in a brand new field, we do that most years before the Super Bowl so the field that’s right behind me is brand new, this will be the first game that it will be used,” says Eric Finkelstein, NFL senior director of event operations.
South Florida has hosted the Super Bowl 11 times before.
“We’ve been here more than any other city to host the Super Bowl so there’s a reason why we keep coming back and it’s a perfect setting for what will be a perfect match-up come Sunday,” adds Eric Finkelstein
The Chiefs and 49ers kick off the Super Bowl at 6:30 p.m. on February 2.
Meanwhile, the most coveted prize in the NFL arrived in South Florida over the weekend, ahead of the Super Bowl.
The iconic Lombardi Trophy, which is named after legendary Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi, is made from sterling silver and valued at approximately $50,000.
“I think every kid that grows up playing football dreams of one day being able to hoist the trophy,” says Super Bowl XLVII champion Anquan Boldin.
Boldin, a South Florida native who played football for the FSU Seminoles, was a member of the 2013 Baltimore Ravens championship team.
He signed for the FedEx delivery of the trophy on Saturday at the Super Bowl Experience, a week-long event at which fans can meet players and get autographs, as well as participate in games and purchase football merchandise and memorabilia.
“It feels good, brings back a lot of memories,” Boldin adds. “Hopefully it’s a great game. For me, playing for the 49ers for three years, I’m hoping they bring the sixth trophy home.”
After the trophy is presented to the winner of the game, it will be sent back to its maker, Tiffany & Co., in Rhode Island, to be cleaned and engraved with the team’s name, date and final score of the game. It will then be returned to the winning team for them to display.
