Super Bowl Party Scene Hits Los Angeles For First Time In Decades

It’s been nearly three decades and one honkin’ big pandemic since the NFL’s biggest show on TV arrived in the Los Angeles area. From the look of things, the league and the brands that swim in wake are making up for lost time.

Among Saturday’s big pre-game events was the league’s own charity event, Taste of the NFL, at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, almost straight north about six miles from SoFi Stadium, where the game returns Sunday to Los Angeles for the first time since Michael Jackson was the halftime show, and Dallas thumped Buffalo by 35 points in 1993.

This year, the league, NBC and brands have descended on Los Angeles, with the network mixing its #WorkFromAmerica Olympics coverage with Super Bowl previews, streaming live from outside the $5.5 billion SoFi stadium where the Rams play during the regular season, and will host the Cincinnati Bengals Sunday.

The NFL Channel will air a special focused on the Saturday event, beginning at 5:30 pm ET Sunday, hosted by long-time sportscaster James Brown and featuring notable athletes such as skier Lindsey Vonn, sprinter Allyson Felix, and NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace.

The event Saturday at the Petersen featured food from celebrity chefs such as Carla Hall, Andrew Zimmern, Ming Tsai, and Lashaida Perry, a raft of other celebs of various wattages, and around 30 former NFL players, including Hall of Fame cornerback Charles Woodson, whose Intercept wines had a booth at the event.

It was presented by food giant FritoLay and its corporate cousin The PepsiCo foundation, along with a bunch of other big brands. The event, whose tickets started at $1,000 apiece, benefitted GENYOUth, a non-profit dedicated to ending hunger for students.

A group of booths scattered among the Petersen’s remarkable collection of unique autos featured companies such as Chef’s Toys, cheese seller Fromagerie & Co., and Drinjk Eezy, one of multiple vendors with a different take on wine delivery (theirs was 6.3-ounce single servings “plus a little bit” in glass columns). There was even a new take on a photo booth, by a company called ShotClicks, that creates a 360-degree, slow-motion video.

The event also featured an extensive series of events in the Equality Lounge, featuring speakers such as WNBA star Lisa Leslie, National Urban League President Marc Morial, the NFL’s VP of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Jonathan Beane, Washington Commanders coach Jennifer King, and a number of NFL players, among others.

There were plenty of other events going on around town, perhaps more than any mere human could keep track of, much less attend, especially at the back end (we hope) of a pandemic.

Mickey Guyton, who’ll perform the National Anthem on Sunday, gave a showcase Thursday night. Cameo, the app that connects fans with personal greetings from celebrities and athletes, held a couple of events, including a Saturday night party and a game-day watch party at a Beverly Hills mansion on Sunday.

The antacid company TUMS sponsored a trivia contest live-streamed on Twitter Thursday night between two former star NFL players, running back Terrell Davis and receiver Hines Ward, ahead of a “Tumsworthy” trivia challenge with $88,000 in prizes for everyday fans on game day.

And though it wasn’t directly tied to the Super Bowl, Gala Games launched its Gala Music initiative at the Forum, the long-ago home of the NBA’s Lakers and mere steps from SoFi Stadium, on Thursday night.

Apple Music DJ Zane Lowe led chats with notables such as Paris Hilton, electronic music star Steve Aoki, BT and Snoop Dogg, followed by live performances by Doja Cat. H.E.R., Kings of Leon, 3LAU and others.