91�ȱ�

It’s one of the biggest sporting events in the world.

American football's showpiece event, the Super Bowl, takes place every year to crown the sport's world champions.

It's a star-studded affair, with a spectacular halftime musical performance, celebrities in attendance and two top teams going head-to-head to lift the Vince Lombardi Trophy.

The Super Bowl has been played since 1966 - but as with any major event, things haven't always gone as expected. 91�ȱ� Bitesize takes a look at some memorable and unusual moments in the history of America’s Game.

Virtual coin toss

The idea of remotely attending a major event seems pretty ordinary these days, but it led to a unique first at Super Bowl XIX in 1985.

Stanford Stadium in California played host to the match-up between the San Francisco 49ers and the Miami Dolphins – with the home state San Francisco team going on to win the game.

The game took place on 20 January – which was also the inauguration date for US President Ronald Reagan’s second term, as he'd won a landslide election two months earlier.

The inauguration date is fixed in the US Constitution – meaning not even the Super Bowl can move it. But President Reagan was keen to take up the invite to be the first sitting president to carry out the pre-game coin toss, so carried it out via satellite from the White House.

The Dolphins called heads – but President Reagan confirmed it was tails, giving San Francisco the choice to receive the ball from kick-off.

Blackout Bowl

When the eyes of the world are on your major event, the last thing you need is a power cut.

But that’s what happened at Super Bowl XLVII in 2013.

The Baltimore Ravens were leading the San Francisco 49ers 28-6 in the opening minutes of the third quarter when suddenly the Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana was plunged into darkness.

Power had failed in the stadium, forcing a 34-minute delay while engineers frantically tried to restore electricity.

Once the lights came back on, the 49ers were inspired and recharged by the break and scored 17 unanswered points to come within one touchdown of winning the title – before the Ravens scored two more field goals to ultimately get the victory and put the lights out on San Francisco’s Super Bowl dream.

The accidental touchdown

Scoring the winning goal, runs, or in this case, touchdown must be every sporting star’s childhood dream. It’s safe to say, however, that Ahmad Bradshaw’s decisive moment from Super Bowl XLVI won’t have been as he imagined it.

The running back for the New York Giants scored the match-winning touchdown in 2012 - but not entirely on purpose.

The Giants were on the comeback trail against red-hot favourites, the New England Patriots at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, just two points behind with minutes remaining.

The Giants, in possession of the ball close to the Patriots’ end goal, knew a field goal could be enough for a win – but crucially wanted to use up as much time as possible to prevent their opponents from launching a comeback of their own.

Quarterback Eli Manning handed Bradshaw the ball, with instructions to get close to, but not cross into, the end goal – but the Patriots defence had no intention of stopping him.

They wanted to concede a touchdown, which would give the New England team around a minute to attempt to score one of their own and win the game. What happened next was one of the strangest plays in Super Bowl history, as Bradshaw sprinted, expecting a tackle – only to see the defence stand to one side.

Bradshaw realised what was happening, but too late. As he tried to put the brakes on, he toppled over into the end zone despite his best efforts to stop. Thankfully for him, and for his teammates, the Patriots' attempts to score in the final 59 seconds were unsuccessful and the New York team won their fourth ever Super Bowl.

Where’s my helmet?

It’s the stuff of PE lesson nightmares – you open your bag and realise you’ve forgotten your kit.

That’s bad enough at school, but at the biggest American football game of the year?

In Super Bowl XXVI at the Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the Buffalo Bills were taking on the team formerly known as the Washington Redskins.

Running back Thurman Thomas – widely regarded as one of the best offensive players of the era – was lining up for the Bills. Thomas had a pre-game ritual where he placed his helmet on the 34-yard line.

Unfortunately, there was a mix-up during the Super Bowl build up. Harry Connick Jr was performing the national anthem before the game got underway and Thomas’ helmet was moved so that a temporary stage could be set up.

Come kick-off, Thomas couldn’t find his helmet, which meant he was forced to miss the opening two plays of the game.

The day didn’t get much better for Thomas and the Bills, who lost 37-24 to lose their second Super Bowl in a row, part of a record-breaking four consecutive Super Bowl defeats for the Buffalo team.

Crossing the pond

While the Super Bowl is as all-American as you can get, there have been a few British winners in recent years.

Five British-born men have won Super Bowl rings - the prize given to individuals for winning a Super Bowl – and unbelievably, two of them were teammates who claimed the sport’s top prize twice together.

The New York Giants kicker Laurence Tynes and 91�ȱ� Sport pundit Osi Umenyiora were both a part of that 2012 Super Bowl winning team, having also won the Super Bowl with the Giants against the Patriots in 2007 as well.

London-born Scott McCready became the first British winner of the Super Bowl – a member of the practice squad for the New England Patriots, he watched from the sidelines as they beat the St Louis Rams at Super Bowl XXXVI in 2002.

Marvin Allen won a Super Bowl in similar circumstances – the wide receiver was part of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ practice squad during their Super Bowl XLIII victory over the Arizona Cardinals in 2009.

Meanwhile Jay Ajayi, who moved to the US from England when he was seven years old, earned a Super Bowl ring as part of the Philadelphia Eagles victory over the New England Patriots at Super Bowl LII in 2018 – Ajayi rushed for 57 yards during the game as the Eagles won their first-ever Super Bowl.