The Super Bowl returns to Atlanta for the third time this Sunday. This time, it’s the Los Angeles Rams vs. the New England Patriots. You like knew one of those facts already. Maybe both. Maybe neither? If you are in the neither group (or group one or group two) keep reading because Complete PR has created a list of things for you to know about Super Bowl Sunday that will help you get through the inevitable parties you will go to Sunday night.
Random Sports Trivia (to show how much you really know)
- Neither the Rams nor the Patriots started as NFL teams, and yet here they are playing for its title? How did this happen? The Patriots started their odyssey in 1960 as the Boston Patriots in the American Football League (AFL). The AFL and the NFL eventually merged together in 1960, and the Patriots became an NFL team and soon became the New England Patriots (and rocked awesome red-and-white uniforms. The Rams have a longer journey. They started as the Cleveland Rams in 1936 in another league known as the American Football League, which is not the same league as the Patriots were in. That league lasted two seasons, but the Rams had already gone to the NFL in 1937 because basically they wanted to join a better league.
- The Rams have won NFL titles in Cleveland, Los Angeles and St. Louis joining the host city’s MLB Braves as the only franchise in the big four sports to have won a title in three different cities.
- Tom Brady, the Patriots quarterback, is older than the head coach of the Rams, Sean McVay. You likely will hear that a lot this week. But to give you an idea of the age difference, McVay was in high school when Brady won his first Super Bowl with the Patriots.
- The Rams have a really funky history. In the 1970s, their owned swapped the team for the Baltimore Colts. It was like, “hey, you want to live in LA? I will give you my team in exchange for your Colts.” The 1970s were an odd time.
- Long before the Patriots dominated the NFL for the past 20 years from their home turf off Gillette Stadium, they played for several years in Schaefer Stadium, which was named for a regional beer. The 1970s were an odd time.
Some Atlanta trivia (provided by our own ATL-native Emily Dyer)
If you don’t want to talk sports, you can talk about how about traffic will be in Atlanta. Emily, for the record, decided not to head to her hometown this weekend. Here’s why:
- First and foremost, we all know that Atlanta is home to THE busiest airport in the world. Hartsfield- Jackson covers more than 150 U.S. destinations and 2,500 flights daily. That means Patriots’ fans have easy access to the city, which is one reason I chose to stay away (because yes, I’m still a bitter Falcons’ fan).
- For those of you that decide to brave the over-crowded city, I highly suggest stopping by The Varsity. Founded in 1928 by Frank Gordy, a Georgia Tech dropout. Gordy made $47.30 on his first day open for business. The Varsity is also considered the World’s Largest Drive-In restaurant and serves more than 25,000 people per day. Which also means the Atlanta staple will probably be just as busy as the interstates, but at least you are getting to experience some of the world’s greasiest yet tastiest food.
- Another tip for those visiting the city yet unfamiliar with how Atlanta works, make sure you pay attention to where you are going. If your GPS mentions a “Peachtree Street” you may want to double (or triple) check that you are going the right way. Seeing as there are more than 55 streets incorporating the word “Peachtree.” Fun fact: the streets are surprisingly not named after a Georgia peach. The name comes from the Native American village called “Standing Pitch Tree” which somehow translated to Peachtree.
- The actual city of Atlanta is home to more than 460,000 people. However, taking into account all of the metropolitan/urban areas (aka where all the traffic flows from) and you are looking at a solid 6.2 million people. Which yes, that means all the people that you have ever met that say they are “from Atlanta” are actually from OTP (outside the perimeter). Very rare you will ever meet someone that is born and raised ITP (inside the perimeter). Those statistics of ALL the people that live around Atlanta plus the estimated 150,000 out of towners coming to the city means one thing…traffic nightmare (so you see why I decided not to return to Atlanta this weekend).
There you have it folks. Win, lose, or draw, enjoy the Super Bowl.
