Super Bowl parties may look a little different this year with the COVID-19 pandemic still wreaking havoc on our lives and lifestyles, but whether you’re watching with a group in person or holding some sort of virtual party, there are still plenty of ways to add excitement to the game and the gathering.
PICK OUT OF A HAT
Some of the simplest, yet most fun contests for your guests to participate in.
Put names in a literal or virtual hat and randomly assign each guest a name for the following categories: First TD, Last TD, MVP, First Commercial. Be sure to clearly mark which name is for which contest.
FIRST/LAST TD
Here’s a list of names for First/Last TD in order of likelihood. Start from the top and include as many names as people you expect to participate while making sure to include Field and also clearly defining the players who are not included in the Field, since everybody else is.
Don’t forget to do two separate drawings and clearly label First & Last TD on the slips to avoid confusion.
Travis Kelce (KC)
Tyreek Hill (KC)
Field
Leonard Fournette (TB)
Mike Evans (TB)
Chris Godwin (TB)
Darrel Williams (KC)
Clyde Edwards-Helaire (KC)
Rob Gronkowski (TB)
Antonio Brown (TB)
Patrick Mahomes (KC)
Ronald Jones (TB)
Mecole Hardman (KC)
Sammy Watkins (KC)
Cameron Brate (TB)
Tom Brady (TB)
Scotty Miller (TB)
Le’Veon Bell (KC)
Variations
Give people multiple picks
Do separate drawings for KC and TB players and award winners for the first and last TD for each team
SUPER BOWL MVP
Here’s a list of names for MVP in order of likelihood. Start from the top and include as many names as people you expect to participate, again making sure to include and define Field as one.
Also, be sure to write MVP on each slip so they don’t get mixed up with the TD slips.
Pat Mahomes (KC)
Tom Brady (TB)
Travis Kelce (KC)
Tyreek Hill (KC)
Leonard Fournette (TB)
Mike Evans (TB)
Chris Godwin (TB)
Tyrann Mathieu (KC)
Devin White (TB)
Clyde Edwards-Helaire (KC)
Shaquil Barrett (TB)
Mecole Hardman (KC)
Ronald Jones (TB)
Antonio Brown (TB)
Darrel Williams (KC)
Sammy Watkins (KC)
Rob Gronkowski (TB)
Lavonte David (TB)
Jordan Whitehead (TB)
Antoine Winfield Jr. (TB)
Chris Jones (KC)
Frank Clark (KC)
Cameron Brate (TB)
Field
FIRST COMMERCIAL
Here’s a list of Commercial Options based on products/companies we either know or expect to be aired on Super Bowl Sunday. Start from the top and include as many commercial types as people you expect to participate, again making sure to include Field as one.
Alcohol/Beer (Coors, Michelob Ultra, Bud, Samuel Adams)
Chips (Doritos, Cheetos, Pringles)
Candy (M&M)
Soda (Coke, Pepsi, Mountain Dew)
Movie/TV (DirecTV)
Car (Vroom)
Condiments (Mayo, Heinz)
Restaurant (Chipotle)
Fiverr
Doordash
E-Commerce (ETrade, Mercari)
Diapers (Huggies)
Cell Phones
Field
PASS THE CUP
A relatively simple concept with plenty of possible variations, all of which provide excitement from the start and for as long as you want.
The Basics
Have each participant put a couple bucks in a cup.
Randomly decide who gets to start with the cup.
After each change of possession, the cup is passed to the left.
Whoever is holding the cup when a TD is scored takes whatever is in the cup.
Variations
A) Everybody re-antes whenever the cup is passed
B) Play it once at the start of the game
C) Play it twice, once at the start of each half
D) Play it non-stop; just reload the cup after somebody wins
E) Whoever starts a round with the cup gets to choose the winning outcome (TD, FG, Punt, Turnover, Safety, End Half)
SUPER BOWL SQUARES (ON STEROIDS)
Everybody is familiar with Super Bowl squares. Each player is randomly assigned a box with a corresponding digit for Kansas City and Tampa Bay and if the score lands on that “square,” the owner wins. Typically, wins are determined at the end of each quarter.
BUT, there are plenty of interesting variations of this game to increase the fun and excitement.
EVERY SCORE
Instead of grading winners at the end of each quarter, grade winners every time there is a score.
That means if the AFC team scores a TD in the first quarter and successfully makes the PAT, the owners of the boxes AFC 6, NFC 0 and AFC 7, NFC 0 will each hit. And so on every time there is a score change.
The one challenge with this is deciding what percentage of the pot is awarded for each score since the number of score changes at this point is unknown.
Accounting for up to 25 score changes is probably sufficient. That will allow each winner to collect up to four times the price of the box on each hit while accounting for plenty of scores if the game turns into a shootout.
Of course, if there are fewer than 25 scoring changes, the final winner gets to keep the rest of the pot. But, if there are more, those winners will be left out unless you want to wait until the end of the game to determine the structure.
We wouldn’t go down that route, but if that’s what you choose, good luck.
EVERY MINUTE
Similar to the above option, except this prize structure can be defined prior to the game (well, unless there is OT and if there is, you’re on your own).
This contest awards a winner each time a minute of gametime comes off the clock. The likelihood of winning consecutive minutes (potentially several minutes in a row) means you don’t need to go crazy with the prizes for each individual winner.
We don’t recommend awarding winners at the start of each quarter since that person would have already won the previous minute and we don’t recommend making the owner of the 0-0 box an automatic winner at the start, simply because that person already has the greatest advantage.
So, awarding a winner starting when the clock hits 14:00 all of the way down to :00 for each quarter will account for 60 separate winners.
You can account for whatever prize structure you want based on that, but we think 1.5 times the cost of the box is fair. That accounts for 90 percent of the pot, leaving room for any type of bonuses you’d want to give for halftime and/or final score winners. You can also immediately refund “dead numbers” like 2-2 and 5-5 while keeping their boxes live if they do get lucky.
Variations: In addition to refunding the “dead numbers,” some people like to make the prize for each winner smaller while also rewarding the invert box for having the number “backward.” While that decreases the winners’ takes, it does keep the action alive for twice as many participants, which is never a bad thing.
PROP SHEET
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