How it went down

I know the next Super Bowl in Tampa Bay is not for another 4 years but I'm pretty excited about the news all the same. As an article in the Tribune points out Super Bowl week is basically a huge party for the city and football fans. It's a chance for a city to show off (or in the case of Jacksonville humiliate its self) and make an impression on people who are not familiar with the area. For that one week in February the media (not just the sports media) will descend on the bay area, and show the rest of America what they think of Tampa Bay. Here's hoping things go smoothly.

Anyway, out of the four cities up for the Super Bowl, it came down to a close decision between Atlanta and Tampa Bay:

"When Houston was knocked out in the first ballot, there was mild surprise because the Miami-Fort Lauderdale bid had been considered the longest shot, considering the 2007 game already has been awarded to Dolphins Stadium.

"South Florida was eliminated on the second ballot, leaving Tampa competing against Atlanta and aggressive Falcons owner Arthur Blank.

"Neither region received the required 21 votes on the third ballot, so it went to a simple majority, and Tampa was selected as Super Bowl host for the fourth time, and first since 2001."

I still don't think the bay area's weather was enought to convince the NFL owners, and more likely the extra incentives the Tampa Bay Super Bowl committee offered where what convinced many owners to change their minds in the end.