One of the biggest entertainment attractions in the world, the Super Bowl, is almost here in the Valley. With an event of such scale happening, ASU students and residents of the area will experience traffic delays, parking changes and an influx of visitors. ASU's Downtown Phoenix campus will be the most impacted because it's the most concentrated area of events, watch parties and other attractions.
ASU shuttles
Shuttle services are running on normal schedules, except for the Maroon shuttle routes that go to the Mercado on the Downtown Phoenix campus.
"Signs are already in place and the GPS bus tracker has been updated," an ASU spokesperson wrote in an email. "A general notice also went out to the DPC community about parking and street closures."
Parking
The University told students to expect increased traffic from now until Monday, Feb. 13. School officials are recommending students "remain parked until you are ready to leave for the day. Leaving your parking location and returning that day will likely increase your commute time."
The Heritage Square parking garage on the Downtown Phoenix campus will be closed to all permit holders from Monday, Jan. 30 to Monday, Feb. 13. Vehicles must be removed by 8 a.m. on Jan. 30. For permit holders, park in the East Garage. Heritage Square permits will be allowed access into the East Garage for free.
ASU Police Department's involvement
"ASU Police will be engaged in various ways to support the Super Bowl," the ASU spokesperson said. "We will be providing our K-9 unit to support explosive ordnance disposal security operations. ASU Police officers will also conduct traffic control on or near campus as we would during any other public events.
"There will also be officers working the Super Bowl in 'overtime' status. That is, they are volunteering to work on their own time, and not in their official capacity as ASU Police officers. This is a common practice in the Valley. For example, during home football games we typically have dozens of police officers from various cities and agencies working overtime for us."
Traffic logistics
There will be a number of disruptions that will impact traffic. With many events happening in Phoenix and near the stadium in Glendale, the normal flow in the area on the roads will be different while the big game is here.
There is an interactive map users can navigate which will notify when and where road closures are happening. These Twitter accounts: @StreetsPHX, @PhoenixPolice and @PHXWater, will be putting out additional information regarding road closures. You can also find out about more road closures here: ADOT/Arizona 511 Travel Information and Maricopa County Department of Transportation Road Closures.
Another factor residents need to consider is that the Professional Golf Association will also be in town. Waste Management Phoenix Open is taking place at Tournament Players Club Scottsdale, located towards the northern end of the city. The tournament will be held from Feb. 6 to 12, directly overlapping with the Super Bowl and preparation festivities.
Super Bowl-related events
There are a number of Super Bowl-related events taking place on or near campus ahead of the big game.
The following events are open to students only:
- NFL alumni and veterans workout: Feb. 8 at 6 p.m. at ASU Preparatory Academy in downtown Phoenix
- Job fair: Feb. 8-11 from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. at Fusion on First on the Downtown Phoenix campus
- NFL alumni concert and autographs: Feb. 11 10-11:30 a.m at Flip Kitchen inside Fusion on First
These events are open to the general public:
- NFL alumni health and wellness expo: Feb. 8-10 from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at Civic Space Park
- Pickleball clinic: Feb. 8-11 from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. at Civic Space Park
- Pickleball tournament: Feb. 8-11 from 10 a.m.-6 p.m at the SDFC in Downtown Phoenix
- Future of Phoenix augmented reality experience: Feb. 9-12 at various times at the Thunderbird School of Global Management
Watch parties
ASU is hosting two watch parties on Super Bowl Sunday. One is at Civic Space Park in downtown Phoenix, and the other is at Mullett Arena on the Tempe campus.
Influx of tourists and visitors
Prior Super Bowls, like the one in 2019 in Atlanta, have seen upwards of 500,000 people travel to host cities. With a top tourist destination like Phoenix and Scottsdale and prime winter weather, expect higher numbers for this year's game.
Game attendance
State Farm Stadium has a capacity of 63,400 seats. But the stadium has the ability to expand for bigger events — like the Final Four, the Fiesta Bowl and the Super Bowl. For these large-scale sporting events, State Farm can expand its capacity to 73,000. Ticket prices are one of the highest on-record; just over $5,000 is the get-in price for one ticket from some retailers.
Financial impact of Super Bowl LVII
The Super Bowl Host Committee did not respond to The State Press' questions by the time of publication. But last year at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, the committee hired a firm to research how money would be impacting the area. That estimate was between $234 and $447 million.
Super Bowl Experience in downtown
There will be two different Super Bowl Experiences, one paid and one free. The paid one is at the Phoenix Convention Center and the free one is at Margaret T. Hance Park. At the Phoenix Convention Center, the event starts on Feb. 4 and 5, closes, and picks up again from Feb. 9 to 11.
There will be an NFL theme park where fans can participate in a 40-yard dash, get player autographs and take photos with Super Bowl rings and the Vince Lombardi trophy. Tickets are $20.
At Hance Park, the event goes from Feb. 9 to 12. A football-themed obstacle course will be the main event along with a tailgate experience aimed at pets, a Frito Lays attraction and a photo opportunity with a 16-foot tall Lombardi trophy.
It is free for the general public. There will be a free live watch party for the public at Hance Park with giant LED screens.
Eyes on the TV
Last year, 99.2 million people watched the Super Bowl between the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals. With two of the most passionate fanbases in the NFL, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs, and two of the game's most exciting young quarterbacks, Jalen Hurts and Patrick Mahomes, that number should easily reach 100 million this year. NFL history will be made in this game as the first set of brothers to play against each other in the Super Bowl with Eagles' Jason Kelce and the Chiefs' Travis Kelce.
Update: This story was updated on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023 at 8:05 p.m. MST to include more details about Super Bowl-related events happening on or around campus.
Edited by Piper Hansen, Reagan Priest and Luke Chatham.
Reach the reporter at lstanleycribe@gmail.com and @LSscribe on Twitter.
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Logan Stanley is a senior reporter at The State Press. He previously served as the managing editor of the school newspaper at Eastern Washington University. He has four years experience as a freelance journalist and is a graduate student in the master of arts of sports journalism program.
