Super Bowl LVI: What you need to know

It’s Super Sunday, and according to ESPN, the game between the Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnati Bengals marks the first time since 2003 that the participating teams enter the game with a combined zero or one Vince Lombardi Trophy.

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For the second straight season, a team will be playing the Super Bowl in its home stadium. SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, is the home of the Rams and the Los Angeles Chargers. Last year, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers became the first team to play a Super Bowl on its home turf, defeating the Kansas City Chiefs.

Here’s what you need to know about Super Bowl LVI:

What time is the game?

Super Bowl LVI will be played at 6:30 p.m. EST on Sunday. The game will be live on NBC and streamed on Peacock. Fans can also watch the game at NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app. Yahoo Sports will also stream the game. Telemundo will broadcast the game in Spanish, the Los Angeles Times reported.

You can listen to the Super Bowl on Westwood One radio, SiriusXM NFL Radio and NFL GamePass.

Who is playing?

The Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnati Bengals will square off. The two teams were No. 4 seeds in their respective conferences after winning their divisions. The Rams finished the regular season with a 12-5 record, while the Bengals were 10-7.

The Bengals reached the third Super Bowl in franchise history by defeating the Chiefs 27-24 in overtime in the AFC Championship game. It is Cincinnati’s first Super Bowl appearance since the 1988 season, when the Bengals lost to the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XXIII. Cincinnati also lost to the 49ers in Super Bowl XVI, falling 26-21 at the Pontiac Silverdome.

The Rams defeated the 49ers 20-17 in the NFC Championship Game at SoFi Stadium, reaching their first Super Bowl since the 2018 season. In Super Bowl LIII, the Rams were held without a touchdown in a 13-3 loss to the New England Patriots. The Rams’ only Super Bowl win came at the end of the 1999 season when the “Greatest Show on Turf” squad, based in St. Louis, led the Rams to a 23-16 victory against the Tennessee Titans.

Who is favored?

According to the latest odds from Caesars Sportsbook in Las Vegas, the Rams are a four-point favorite, CBS Sports reported. The over-under for total points scored is 48.5.

The latest odds and prop bets can be found at VSiN, WilliamHill, Westgate and DraftKings.

Who will win?

We won’t know until late Sunday, of course. However, ESPN polled 76 experts, and the Rams were picked by 43 of them (56.6%). The Bengals, meanwhile, received 33 votes (43.4%).

Who is singing the national anthem?

Three-time Grammy-nominated country artist Mickey Guyton will sing the “Star-Spangled Banner” before the game. During pregame ceremonies, six-time Grammy nominee Jhené Aiko will sing “America the Beautiful” and Mary Mary, accompanied by Yola, will perform “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”

Who is performing at halftime?

This year’s halftime show will have a rap, hip-hop flavor, with Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar set to take the stage.

Who are the officials?

Ronald Torbert, an NFL official since 2010, is the referee for Sunday’s game, the Times reported. His crew will include Bryan Neale (umpire), Derick Bowers (down judge), Carl Johnson (line judge), Rick Patterson (field judge), Keith Washington (side judge), Scott Halverson (back judge) and Roddy Ames (replay official).

What about commercials?

There will be plenty of them, and for many viewers, they are the highlight of the broadcast. NBC, which is broadcasting this game, said that for a 30-second ad during the Super Bowl, some advertisers have paid as much as $7 million. The average cost is $6.5 million, up from a $5.6 million average for 2019 and 2020, according to ESPN.

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