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Sibling Rivalries at the Super Bowl

14 Apr

Sibling Rivalries – Brother Vs Brother at the Super Bowl

The brothers Harbaugh squaring off across a football field for one of the biggest events in sports will surely become one of the abiding storylines of this Super Bowl. The New Orleans Mercedes-Benz Super Dome is certainly not the first major host to play host to this type or rivalry and it undoubtedly will not be the last.

The NFL seems to be full of brother-versus-brother this season. The Manning brothers, quarterbacks Peyton and Eli, must be the most famous example. The AFC championship game that sent the Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl bound pitted brother against brother, too. Arthur Jones III, a defensive end for the Ravens, prevailed over his brother Chandler Jones a (surprise!) defensive end for the Patriots. They breed them big in that family I guess! The most second most famous, behind the Manning’s surely must be Tiki and Ronde Barber. The public is probably more familiar with Tiki in general but, in reality, that’s more for his flair for self-promotion than footballing superiority over his brother.

In other sports around the world there are plenty of examples of the same, such as Ralf and Michael Schumacher in Formula 1 motor racing and the Klitschko brothers in boxing. The biggest and most compelling sibling rivalry in sports in recent years surely must be the Williams sisters. Coming to direct competition more than most other sporting siblings, the pair battled each other for the top of the ladies tennis rankings for years.

Most Watched Sporting Event

14 Apr

Is the Super Bowl the Most Watched Sporting Event in the World?

You hear it every year, sports broadcasters breathlessly announcing that there are a billion people watching the game worldwide. “The most watched sporting event worldwide,” is the yearly call. While the game has stunning viewership numbers, is it really true? Most publically available information says, “no.” Alongside the hyperbole about the financial boon for the host city, this misinformation ranks at the top of the Super Bowl misinformation table.

The financial benefits of hosting the game have been well discussed in other locations but suffice to say the figures of a $300 million boost for the local economy is not even close. Most figures put the amount at the high end at $30 million (certainly not insignificant) but on average hovering considerably below that. Back to viewing numbers, the available figures put the Super Bowl as being watched in approximately 100 million homes. A billion people? Sure must be crowded for people who would have to be watching each of those screens to get that number to a billion.

The most watched yearly sporting event is consistently a game from Soccer’s English Premier League. And what’s the most watched sporting event ever? It turns out to be a Cricket game! It was a World Cup match featuring India vs. Pakistan. It’s wasn’t even the final game of the season! Perhaps in the US, it’s hard to concieve of other world sporting events being as widely watched as our own American Football. A little perspective, however, never ruins our love for the game, but maybe we should take what the marketers say with a little grain of salt.

Tagged With: Super Bowl

13 Apr

Is the Super Bowl the Most Watched Sporting Event in the World?

Sibling Rivalries – Brother Vs Brother at the Super Bowl

The Inaccurate World of Sports Prediction and the Super Bowl

Nate Silver, the statistical genius behind the New York Times columns and website that predicts election results with spooky accuracy, recently crashed and burned looking at the NFL. He predicted that this year, the Seahawks and the Patriots would be heading to New Orleans. Clearly, we know that’s not the case now. While cold hard …

Four Things to Know about the 2014 NBA Play-offs

12 Apr

Four Things to Know about the 2014 NBA Play-offs

The 2014 NBA Play-offs are in full motion, and the top eight Eastern Division and top eight Western Division have been narrowed down. Here are four things to know about what’s happening now in the the National Basketball Association’s postseason:

1) Two of the teams competing in the Conference Finals have just been announced.

The finals are upon us, and two of the teams that played in 2013 will be back at it this year. The San Antonio Spurs and the Miami Heat will face off, bringing back memories for many fans.

2) The Heat barely made it to the Conference Finals.

In their game against the Brooklyn Nets, the Heat won by a mere two points. They trailed by eight points near the end of the game and saved it just in the nick of time. The Spurs, on the other hand, beat the San Antonio Blazers by a substantial margin, and their score came in at 102 to 84. There’s no telling if this is foreshadowing for both teams’ performances during the Conference Finals.

3) The format of the finals has changed.

For the first time in 30 years, the finals will be placed in a 2-2-1-1-1 format. Owners voted and approved the format change. The higher seed team will host the first two games, then the other team will host the following two. The final three games will rotate between hosts.

4) Critics are expecting more from the Heat.

Experts say the Heat aren’t performing at their best so far during the postseason tournament. After a narrow win over the Brooklyn Nets, many people are questioning if fans will get to see the Heat going full-force during the finals.

resources: http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2014/5/15/5719116/nba-playoff-scores-results-highlights-heat-spurs