The Football Game That Changed America: How the NFL Created a National Holiday

(Hardback)

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A fascinating history of the Super Bowl and its massive impact on the sports world and beyond.

The Super Bowl has changed what was just another wintry Sunday into Americas unofficial holiday. Its the biggest entertainment event of the year. Its the most important advertising event of the year. It is the biggest gambling event of the year. More Americans watch this game than vote in presidential elections.

How did this all happen In The Football Game That Changed America, Dennis Deninger reveals how the Super Bowl went from almost being canceled after its first two years to becoming an ingrained part of American life. He tells the story of how this colossal event came to beincluding the challenges, stumbles, and amusing surprises along the wayand details the games incredible impact well beyond the sports world, touching virtually every facet of life in the United States.

Featuring colorful characters, bold rivals, and twists of fate, The Football Game That Changed America brings the history, growth, and future of the Super Bowl to life. Its a captivating deep dive into a sporting event like no other.

Reviews

A statistics-driven history of the Super Bowl celebrates the annual mega-event at the confluence of athletics, business, entertainment, and patriotism. Born of the 1966 merger between the National Football League and its younger rival, the American Football League, the inaugural inter-league championship game was thrown together in less than two months time. Differences in television network practices, rules, and even footballs used by each league made for a less polished event than originally envisioned by league commissioner Pete Rozelle, who wanted a dramatic spectacle involving balloons, doves, and two jetpack pilots symbolically shaking hands. But soon the Super Bowl became the biggest extravaganza in sports. The most watched television event every year since 1972, it has an estimated annual economic impact of $48 billion (including $6 billion of lost productivity the Monday afterwards). A former sports broadcasting executive, Deninger emphasizes the Super Bowls symbiotic relationship with television and shares revealing statistics. Acknowledging that event organizers and broadcasters havent always responded nimbly to controversies, such as players kneeling in protest or concerns about concussions, Deninger remains optimistic about the big games potential to unify Americans. * Booklist *
This entertaining history from Deninger, a former ESPN producer, traces how the Super Bowl became 'the largest shared American experience of the year.' He explains how the American Football Leagues 1960 launch threatened the National Football Leagues monopoly, motivating the latter to initiate a 1966 merger that stipulated a 'world championship game' between the top teams from each league. The Super Bowl got off to a shaky start, Deninger writes, noting that a third of the tickets went unsold at the first game in 1967, and that the NFLs dominance over the AFL in the first two Super Bowls led the leagues to consider abandoning the matchups until the unexpected triumph of the Jets, an AFL team, at Super Bowl III. Elsewhere, Deninger discusses how the Super Bowl became an advertising bonanza and chronicles the evolution of the halftime show. He details mind-boggling statistics about the game (it provides a $41.9 billion annual boost to the national economy) and serves up plenty of amusing tidbits.... Football fans will find much to cheer for. * Publishers Weekly *
Dennis is a bona fide expert on anything and everything connected to the Super Bowl. He has tracked the impact of this colossal sporting event from the very start and has his finger on the pulse of what it will look like in the years to come. This book takes you behind the scenes to see what has made the game and all that surrounds the phenomenon it is today. -- Ian Eagle, CBS Sports commentator
Nobody is more qualified to discuss the Super Bowl and its influence on the American culture. Dennis combines a career as a TV professional with academia and fandom to cover all the bases! Bravo! -- Drew Esocoff, directed seven Super Bowl telecasts, Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame 2022
If there was ever a topic worthy of complete inspection, the Super Bowl is it. From its history to every aspect of the spectacle, Dennis Deninger details every angle in a thorough and entertaining style. -- Fred Gaudelli, produced seven Super Bowl telecasts, Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame 2020
The Super Bowl has grown to almost supernatural significance since it was first played before a less than capacity crowd in the Los Angeles Coliseum in January 1967. Dennis Deninger has done a marvelous job documenting what it has come to mean for all of us who love the sport of football. I highly recommend this book. -- Verne Lundquist, CBS Sports commentator, Sports Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award 2016, and former TV voice of the Dallas Cowboys
In a little over a half century, the Super Bowl has evolved from a game that didnt sell out into a national holidayby far the most-watched television program in the United States annually. Dennis Deninger takes the readers on a journey covering all aspects of the football game that changed America. . . championship prose at its finest! -- Kenny Albert, FOX/TNT/MSG/NBC sportscaster, author of A Mic for All Seasons
In the United States, the Super Bowl has become the preeminent sporting event, eclipsing even the World Cup and the Olympics. It captures the passion Americans have for their favorite teams in their favorite sport. The Football Game That Changed America is a captivating story of how the Super Bowl was created and how it grew into a colossal event that transcends sport. Dennis Deninger, an Emmy Award-winning television producer and professor of sport media, takes you behind the scenes to feel the power, the magic, and the magnetism of Americas premier sporting event. Dont miss it! -- David Falk, legendary sports agent
It used to be just a game. Its hard to remember that now. But thanks to this amazing book by Dennis Deninger, we all get to see exactly how that changedthanks to Joe Namath, Vegas, all those commercials, your buddy who runs your Super Bowl pool, and the largest collection of TV cameras in America. Dennis is a great storyteller whose exceptional attention to detail weaves this improbable tale together in a way no one ever has. Im so grateful he wrote this book! -- Jayson Stark, senior writer, The Athletic, Baseball Hall of Fame Career Excellence Award 2019
Some of the most entertaining and educational hours I spent at Syracuse University came in Professor Deningers classroom. His energy, passion, and deep knowledge of the material kept it funand memorable. Years later, I can still recite the stories of Johnny Unitas playing hero in The Greatest Game Ever Played, Rep. Hale Boggs cutting a deal to enable the NFL merger, and Joe Namath guaranteeing a winand that was all before 1970! When it comes to the intersection of sports and business, theres no one Id rather learn from than Dennis Deninger. -- Drew Carter, TV voice of the Boston Celtics
From the network board room to the university lecture hall, Dennis experiences and relationships offer the perfect foundation for telling the story of Americas yearly greatest day in sports. Sure, there is the game, but going beyond the field of play and doing a deeper dive into the culture around the event before and after is where the true scope of the Super Bowl is revealed in this book. -- Rich Feinberg, Penske Entertainment senior vice president, Indianapolis Motor Speedway executive producer
Super Bowl. Such a simple name, that has grown to have complex qualities. It is the pinnacle of all things in sports, and while others try to create their own version, Dennis Deninger shows why the NFL will always be the envy of the athletic world. -- Rob Stone, FOX Sports host and commentator
The Super Bowl is so much more than a game. Its a superlative. The biggest and most important version of anything you can name is that things Super Bowl. Professor Deningers book explores how Americas unofficial holiday has combined sport, entertainment, business, and culture to influence and reflect the heart and soul of a nation. -- Frank Supovitz, former NFL senior vice president of events, president & CEO of Fast Traffic Events and Entertainment

Author Bio

Dennis Deninger is an Emmy-award winning former television producer, author, and innovative educator. He has produced live sports television from six continents and across the USA and spent 25 years at ESPN. Deninger is the author of Live Sports Media: The What, How and Why of Sports Broadcasting and Sports on Television. He is a professor at Syracuse Universitys Falk College and was the founding director of the sports communications graduate program at the Newhouse School of Public Communications.