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Fashion watch
Travis Kelce has arrived in an extraordinary 70s outfit. It’s not on the wires yet, and I don’t want to link to a certain social media site so we’ll make do with some other highlights:
Our first big ad of the day, with a trailer for the new Mission: Impossible. You’ll be surprised it involves Tom Cruise nearly maybe falling off a very fast mode of transport (this time: a plane).
Because it’s 2025 and he is legally obliged to be in everything, Bob Dylan tribute act (but what a tribute act) Timothée Chalamet pops up chatting to Kendrick Lamar about the half-time show. In black and white because they’re artists. We’ll also have a liveblog and review of Kendrick’s show later – early news is that, no, he’s not going to let Drake off the hook.
Patrick Mahomes has been the Super Bowl MVP for the last two seasons and three times in total (only Tom Brady [five times] has more). Who do our writers think will win in today? I’ll give you one guess…
Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs. Against an outstanding Eagles defense, Mahomes will need to be near-perfect. The Eagles do not turn the ball over – and they force takeaways. Mahomes cannot afford to cough up a silly interception or fumble. Even without turnovers, the Chiefs will need the quarterback to conjure a moment or two of magic to get over the line. But Mahomes always raises his game on the biggest stage, and I’m guessing he will walk away with his fourth Super Bowl MVP. Oliver Connolly
Jalen Hurts, Eagles. Should the Chiefs sell out to stop Barkley from beating them, it will be on Hurts to keep the defense honest by exploiting one-on-one matchups on Brown and DeVonta Smith while prioritizing ball security. The final stat line may not be as splashy as two years ago, when Hurts played arguably the best game of his career in a narrow 38-35 defeat, but the result will more than make up for it. Hurts’ win-loss record as a starter is 42-12 since 2022, second only to Mahomes (48-10) over that span. As a famous Louisianian once put it, it’s time to put some respek on his name. Bryan Armen Graham
Saquon Barkley, Eagles. The offensive line will be at its best, and Barkley will showcase the same vision that has defined his sensational season. Barkley’s stats will be so massive - let’s say, 175-plus yards and two scores - that awarding a running back the MVP trophy for the first time since Denver’s Terrell Davis won it in 1998 will be a no-brainer. Melissa Jacobs
Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs. Picked for the third straight time, Mahomes joins Brady as the only player to win the award four times in a career. Andrew Lawrence
Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs. When the Chiefs win, by hook or by crook, it will be in large part because of the golden arm and mind of Mahomes. There may be a more decisive turn from Nick Bolton disrupting Barkley, or anyone disrupting him for that matter, but the crown will remain with Mahomes. Graham Searles
You can read out full list of predictions for the games, including scores and key players here:
Tom Brady, on the broadcast for Fox, says the players shouldn’t get too hyped up before the game as the day – with the halftime show and all the pregame buildup – is much longer than a typical NFL Sunday. The reception for Brady’s early broadcasting career has been mixed at best. You can read more here:
Andrew Lawrence
The biggest football game of the year might also be one of the most secure locations in the country.
The Department of Homeland Security has classified the Super Bowl as a Special Event Assessment Rating Level 1 event, its highest grade of public safety risk. Federal and local agencies aren’t taking any chances after the New Years attack on Bourbon Street, flooding the zone to protect an estimated 73,000 attendees that will include the sitting president of the United States for the first time in Super Bowl history. Law enforcement have increased their presence and patrols around the stadium, and they’re further relaying on video surveillance systems equipped with AI to monitor crowd behavior in real time.
Despite the stepped-up security, the crowds are moving around pretty freely around the stadium – but, then again, it’s still early.
Now that Trump is done giving us his plans for saving/destroying the world, we’re going to stick to sports. He’s asked who he thinks will win today’s game. He says the Eagles’ Saquon Barkley is “a great running back” (correct) while the Chiefs have “the quarterback who really knows how to win” (correct) in Patrick Mahomes. He takes time to say that Mahomes’s wife, Brittany, is “phenomenal”. Anyone who wonders why Trump has that opinion may want to refer to Brittany’s views on Instagram. Asked who he thinks will win, Trump says Kansas City. That may influence your own rooting interests this game.
You can read a little more on Trump and the Super Bowl here:
Donald Trump has sat down for a (prerecorded) interview with Fox before the game. He’s the first sitting president in history to attend a Super Bowl. He’s asked about Elon Musk’s Doge team’s actions of late. He says he backs Musk’s policies calling him a “great help” and says he will look at the Department of Education “in the next 24 hours” then the military. He says Canada would be better off as “America’s 51st state”.
Andrew Lawrence, who is in New Orleans for us this weekend, says Eagles fans have definitely outnumbered Chiefs fans in the days leading up to the Super Bowl. Although maybe Chiefs fans are just bored of the Super Bowl now that they win it every year (maybe not in 2025 though!). Anyway, businesses around New Orleans have anticipated an Eagles victory and have started greasing lightpoles to stop jubilant Philly fans climbing them if their team wins (they have previous form on such things) – the city’s major has already asked fans not to do so.
Completely pointless weather forecast because the Super Bowl is indoors but not much is happening yet and we like a bit of color. It’s mostly cloudy and 25C/77F in New Orleans today, meaning it’s a nice walk to the Superdome. I can also reveal that the we have dry conditions inside the stadium, with very little chance of rain. Some would say no chance.
A little non-Eagles/Chiefs news for you, from a team that went nowhere near the Super Bowl this season – and won’t for a while either. Aaron Rodgers’ time with the Jets looks to be over, with multiple reports saying the team told him last year they’re moving on. Which probably won’t upset him too much, given the team’s, ahem, interesting owners.
David will be here shortly, in the meantime here’s our writers on whether they think the Kansas City Chiefs or the Philadelphia Eagles will end up with the Lombardi today:
The final score will be …
Chiefs 27-24 Eagles. The Eagles have the setup to disrupt the Chiefs. They can command the time of possession with Barkley and their run game and then release the hounds on defense to chase down Mahomes. But the Chiefs are a more adaptable team. If the Eagles are forced to play from behind or adjust their approach, the game could run away from them. Ultimately, this is a bet on the best quarterback, offensive play-caller, defensive coach and, yes, kicker in the league. Oliver Connolly
Chiefs 27-38 Eagles. Winning three Super Bowls on the trot is a task so difficult that no team has managed to even come within 60 minutes of it until this year. Both of these clubs are improved versions of the sides who met in that Glendale heart-stopper two years ago, but it says here Kansas City’s charmed postseason run will reach its terminus against a Philadelphia team loaded with talent on both sides of the ball. The deciding factor will be the the Eagles’ offensive line, the tallest and largest in Super Bowl history (average size: 6ft 6in and 338lb) and the secret sauce behind Barkley’s best ever season by an NFL running back. With their front five helping dictate the pace and limit the Chiefs’ time of possession, the Eagles will leave no doubt in bringing home a second Super Bowl title in eight years. Bryan Armen Graham
Chiefs 24-32 Eagles. It’s hard to get as complete a team as the Eagles. The idea of their typically dominant offensive line setting up gaps for Barkley is quite promising, not to mention an extra week for Hurts to get healthy and return to dominating the blitz. Having recent Super Bowl experience should help Philly stave off any early-game jitters, too. Melissa Jacobs
Chiefs 34-20 Eagles. The Chiefs do that thing they always do late in the season and run a bunch of plays out of formations no one’s seen before – and hit on enough of them to stay ahead at half-time. Hurts plays valiantly again, but this time it’s Barkley who mishandles the ball and definitively swings the momentum KC’s way. Throughout, Mahomes shines – not with the game of his life, but with another measured deployment of quick passing and timely running that carries the day. The Chiefs win, Mahomes takes MVP and the greatest ever debate expands from him and Brady to include Andy Reid and Bill Belichick. Trump goes home happy. America braces itself for 10 more years of this. Andrew Lawrence
Chiefs 29-28 Eagles. Kansas City earn an unbelievable three-peat that has strangely also felt entirely expected from the get-go. In what is sure to be a thrilling game Mahomes will come out on top as the master finesser of the finest margins. A stunning two-point conversion from the QB to Kelce, who will then ride off into retirement, will seal history. The next challenge is making the dynasty unassailable with a fourth championship in succession. Graham Searles
You can read our full rundown of predictions for the game, from the MVP to how each team can win, here:
