The Super Bowl is one of the most watched events on the sporting calendar each year.

Last year’s NFL showpiece drew a worldwide TV audience of around 123 million viewers, with 3.4 million of those tuning in on ITV and Sky Sports in the UK.

The Super Bowl is much more than a game of American football though, it’s a cultural and marketing behemoth and a veritable who’s who of celebrities and big brands. Indeed, there is no greater money spinner for an upcoming film, TV show, or video game than to tactically plant a reveal trailer during a break in play.

Some of the most famous commercials in American TV history were first shown, perhaps only shown, during a Super Bowl – such as the Budweiser frogs and the “Hey Kid, Catch” ad for Coca-Cola.

Unfortunately, us UK viewers aren’t treated to these, but there is still plenty we can look out for, and even bet on, that doesn’t involve the on-field action. Here are some of our picks.

Pre-game markets

Every American football game starts with a coin toss to decide who will be on offense first and which way they’ll be driving. In the Super Bowl, however, with millions of eyes on it, this is something bettors wager on. Tails has edged it over the years, with 30 ‘wins’ to 28, and five of the last six. Interestingly, the last nine teams to win the toss have lost the game. The last team to win the toss and the game were the Seahawks in 2014.

Something else you can bet on before the game has even kicked off is the length of the national anthem. This has provided varying results in the last few years, with Reba McEntire’s rendition last year clocking in at 102 seconds, compared to Chris Stapleton’s 125 seconds the year before. 

This year, it will be performed by Grammy winner Jon Batiste, who’s known for his unique blend of jazz and R&B. Previous singers from these genres have tended to stretch it out a few seconds longer than pop stars, which may be why the bookies have set the over/under market at 120.5 seconds. The over and under would’ve come in twice each in the last four Super Bowls.

Some bookies may even offer odds on whether a player or coach will cry during the anthem, or whether or not the singer will miss a word.

Take the over on the national anthem lasting more than two minutes at 4/5 with William Hill

Taylor Swift at the Super Bowl

You may or may not have heard, but Taylor Swift is coupled up with Chiefs star Travis Kelce and has been seen cheering her boyfriend on at almost every game over the past two seasons – including last year’s Super Bowl.

Such is the pop star’s enormous allure, millions of previously non-NFL fans have started following the sport – and buying jerseys with “Swift 87” on the back. You can be sure the cameras will be on her on several occasions throughout the night, but how and when is drawing plenty of speculation.

Depending on your bookie, you may be able to bet on the number of times the singer is on screen, or whether she’ll be shown during the national anthem, or whether she’ll appear on stage with Kendrick Lamar at halftime.

One rumour doing the rounds online is that Kelce could propose to her on the field after the game, and possibly also retire from the sport.

All of this may depend on a Chiefs victory, of course, and SkyBet are offering a featured ‘Request A Bet’ on a Chiefs win and Kelce proposal at 11/1. Even though Swifty grew up an Eagles fan, having been born in Pennsylvania, bookies haven’t priced up the scenario of Kelce simply being able to “shake it off” if her original team wins, and pop the question anyway. 

Bet on Chiefs win and Kelce proposal at 11/1 with Sky Bet

The half-time show

The half-time show is arguably the most coveted slot an artist can play all year – bigger than headlining any festival when you consider just how many homes they’re being beamed into. It’s a spot reserved for all the stars, and this year, Kendrick Lamar has been given the honour.

Given that performers don’t have long to make an impression, there is a game of football to resume after all, you can usually expect a 12-15 minute mashup of all their biggest hits. Punters can even put money on which song they think Kendrick will play first, and last. 

SkyBet believe the rapper will open with “Humble”, pricing his most-streamed song on Spotify at 5/4, and they have this year’s Grammy-winning “Not Like Us” priced at 2/3 to close the show. Before releasing the Drake diss track, however, Kendrick’s go-to closer had been “Savior”, which may be a good value pick at 6/1.

Bet on Kendrick to wrap his halftime show with savior at 6/1 with Sky Bet

Post-game

Even when there’s zeros on the game clock, and we know where the Lombardi trophy is headed, there are still a couple more markets to watch out for.

Drenching the winning coach in Gatorade has been a Super Bowl tradition since the 80s, but America’s favourite energy drink comes in many flavours and several different colours have come spilling out of the giant tub down the years.

The most common colour since 2001 has been orange, appearing five times, with blue and clear tied with four apiece after that. In each of the last two years, Kansas City coach Andy Reid has been given a purple shower. With the Chiefs going for the “threepeat”, bettors may be inclined to believe they’ll stick to their winning formula and load their cooler up with the Riptide Rush flavour once again. This is currently the favourite at SkyBet at 3/2.

If the Eagles were to deny them, however, it really could be anything. In their one and only Super Bowl win in 2018, they covered Doug Pederson in the yellow lemon/lime flavour. That, along with the team’s colour of green, currently sit at second favourites.

Many people will also be keeping an eye, and ear, on the MVP’s post-game speech. They will typically thank someone or something, whether it be fans, teammates, their coach, their family or God, or any combination of these.

As the award often goes to the winning quarterback, punters will be fairly confident that either Patrick Mahomes or Jalen Hurts will be taking to the mic. Both players have been quick to reference faith in the past, so this could be a strong bet.

Bet on another purple Gatorade shower at 3/2 with SkyBet

When is the game, when is the national anthem, half-time show, etc

Sky Sports will begin their live buildup at 10pm, an hour and a half ahead of kickoff (11:30pm UK time), but the Sky Sports NFL channel will be providing wall-to-wall coverage all afternoon and evening. ITV start their broadcast at 10:45pm. 

Whichever channel you tune in on, you won’t miss any of the pre-game pageantry. The teams are expected to emerge from their tunnels around 10 minutes before kickoff to allow time for the national anthem and coin toss.

From kickoff to full time, NFL games usually take around three hours to complete. Therefore, a good guesstimate for those waiting for Kendrick Lamar would be at around 1am.

Due to the extended halftime break, it’s likely the game will go on until around 3am – and possibly beyond if it goes to overtime again. It goes without saying but those waiting for the Gatorade shower and MVP speech are therefore in for a long night. Be sure to stock up on snacks, and remember to get ready for the big game with our best rated NFL bookmakers.

Commercial content notice: Taking one of the bookmaker offers featured in this article may result in a payment to talkSPORT. 18+. T&Cs apply. GambleAware.org

Remember to gamble responsibly

A responsible gambler is someone who:

• Establishes time and monetary limits before playing
• Only gambles with money they can afford to lose
• Never chase their losses
• Doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry or depressed
• Gamcare – www.gamcare.org.uk
• GambleAware – www.gambleaware.org

Find our detailed guide on responsible gambling practices here.

For help with a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 or go to www.gamstop.co.uk to be excluded from all UK-regulated gambling websites.