Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
Punters have descended on pubs across the country in search of cold beer, hot wings and sporting grit as Super Bowl LX fever takes hold Down Under.
It’s deja vu for the millions tuning in today as the Seattle Seahawks take on the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
The New England side came out victorious against their west coast rivals in a 2015 championship that drew the eyes of more than 114 million spectators.
This year promises to be similarly momentous, as publicans across Australia prepare for record crowds.
“It’s out busiest day of the year by far,” Shaun Scanlan, campaign manager at the Sporting Globe in the inner-Melbourne suburb of Richmond told AAP.
The national hospitality group expects to serve more than 34,000 pints of beer and 1.1 tonnes of wings today alone.
“We’ve been airing the game for 15 years but really we have to thank the Taylor Swift effect for these crowds,” Mr Scanlan told AAP.
It matters little Swift’s fiance Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce won’t be taking to the field today, he said, adding this year was sizing up to beat last year’s crowds.
Predictions flowed as easily as Coors Light at the Bridge Road venue on Monday as the game got underway.
Seahawks fan Nathan tipped 50 passing yards from Seattle wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba and a rushing touchdown from their quarterback Sam Darnold.
Fellow diehard Leith doubted the game would be as low-scoring as some punters expected, adding the adrenaline of a championship game would overcome any defensive loggerheads.
“It’s the Super Bowl, you’re going to put on a show,” he told AAP.
Patriots fan Shane told AAP the side could secure victory without former star quarterback Tom Brady, adding Drake Maye was “sensational”.
American rock band Green Day opened the day with a set list replete with classics including American Idiot and Boulevard of Broken Dreams.
But many spectators were holding out for halftime, when Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny took the stage.
“I’m just here for Bad Bunny,” Uruguayan spectator Tanya told AAP at Melbourne’s Hickens Hotel.
“I mean have you heard him sing, have you seen him dance?”
Not everyone was convinced, with Nathan asking whether hip hop belonged on sport’s biggest stage.
“Why not the Red Hot Chili Peppers or some Pearl Jam?” he said, adding hard rock better matched the occasion.
Love of country overpowered team loyalty for many in Seahawks stripes today, as punter Michael Dickson sought to become the second Australian to play for a winning Super Bowl team.
“We’re all Seahawks fans today,” a group of revellers at the Hickens Hotel told AAP
The Seahawks maintained their lead in the third quarter, vindicating bookmakers who tipped a narrow victory for the Seattle side.
