Doomed from the Beginning?

February 2, 2010

We should have seen it coming. The Miami Dolphins were not destined to reach the playoffs and make it to Super Bowl XLIV on their home turf. It is a peculiar trend that has lasted ever since Super Bowl I: the host city has never been to the Super Bowl. In 2010, that trend continues.

Four years ago, when the South Florida Super Bowl Host Committee bid for the 44th Super Bowl and emerged victorious, fate had been set. It must be a part of the old cliche, "You can't have your own Super Bowl and play in it too."

It was only once that a minor stipulation placed a host team in a Super Bowl near home. The year was 1985 when the San Francisco 49ers played the Miami Dolphins just 15 miles away from their stadium, Candlestick Park. Some argue that it was essentially a 49ers home game, minus their familiar stadium.

It's not to say that there is a deliberate conspiracy against host cities playing in their own town, but it seems to have become a curse akin to that of the Madden video game series. It's fairly intriguing that placing an image of a star athlete on a plastic casing could result in so many coincidental injuries of the featured players. Then again, in 44 Super Bowls not one team has played the big game at home, which is equally intriguing.

Guess the Dallas Cowboys (2011 Super Bowl hosts), Indianapolis Colts (2012 Super Bowl hosts) and New Orleans Saints (2013 Super Bowl hosts) better explore ways to counter act this ongoing streak. A collective effort to toss salt over the cities' borders may not be enough to reverse the curse.

Interesting enough this year's two Super Bowl teams are on deck in the upcoming years. Could they rise back to glory by then and bring an end to this madness?