Will this be the year that the Seattle Seahawks finally win their first Super Bowl?  Or will this be the year that Denver Broncos’ Peyton Manning proves he is the best quarterback of all time?  The answers to those questions will soon be revealed during this Sunday’s Super Bowl XLVIII.

According to the Independent, Sunday’s game will be one of the most interesting in history as it pits NFL’s best offense, the Denver Broncos, against its best defense, the Seattle Seahawks.

For football enthusiasts who want to learn more about the football teams going head to head on Sunday, check out this interactive infographic from Statmilk.  The infographic shows detailed information on both teams’ offensive and defensive rankings, players’ performance, team rankings, and a feature that allows users to search for individual players and see their performance summary,  passing summary, and rushing summary.

Thought the spotlight is on the Broncos and Seahawks, the interactive infographics allows for comparison of any teams in the NFL or NCAA.

Super Bowl XLVIII : social entertainment

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The Super Bowl is considered a de facto holiday by most Americans, and is the second largest day for food consumption in the US after Thanksgiving.  But Super Bowl Sunday is not all about football, and not everyone is interested in the sports.  Others tune in for the commercials or the halftime performance.

The NFL knows that not everyone is in it for the game, so this year, to entice a larger audience – or at least get the attention of the younger generation – GRAMMY winner Bruno Mars will be performing at this year’s halftime performance.  Mars is the artist behind hits such as “Locked Out of Heaven,” “Just the Way You Are,” “Treasure,” and “Grenade.”  For those who might not be big Mars fans, the NFL is also throwing in the Red Hot Chili Peppers for fun. It is unclear how their performances will play out but mashups may be on the horizon.

Super Bowl XLVIII will be held at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on February 2, 2014.  For those who will be at MetLife on Sunday, the NFL announced that video streaming on mobile devices will be blocked so as to decongest the network and give everyone a chance at sharing their Super Bowl experience on social media. NFL.com and FoxSportsGo.com will be live streaming the game but those in attendance will not be able to access the live stream.  The block will be implemented on both mobile apps and within Web browsers.

“While we do know that people like to look at replays on their phones and there are some people who like to stream certain amounts of video in the game, the vast majority of our fans want to watch the game on the field, watch the replays on the jumbo board, and participate in the event more than they want to be checking their phone,” NFL CIO Michelle McKenna-Doyle said.

“While we could have made some of that available, it might have impacted the ability for the majority of the fans to be able to stay connected to social media, tweet, Facebook, that kind of thing,” McKenna-Doyle concluded.

And finally, to get the ultimate Super Bowl experience, here are some apps to enhance game day.

5 apps for Super Bowl fun

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NFL Mobile

This app is available for iOS, Android, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone and provides access to Breaking News, Video Highlights, Live Game Scores, and Custom Team News. Fantasy Football players can also follow their teams using this app.  Verizon subscribers can upgrade to premium features such as NFL RedZone and NFL Network 24/7.

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Seahawks Mobile

This app is for Seahawks fan.  It’s available for Android, iOS, Windows Phone, and BlackBerry and delivers the latest news, videos and photos, and social media feeds on player reports, stats, and cheerleaders. It includes wallpapers, a QR code reader, the capability to track fantasy football teams, and much more.

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Broncos Mobile

There’s also an official mobile app for Broncos fans and it features real-time breaking news from the team, post-game blogs, video-on-demand clips of the Broncos’ press conferences, coach and player interviews, gallery of game-time action, podcasts, real-time statistics and scores from the official NFL stats engine, head-to-head stats of the matchup, player stats, drive-by-drive stats, box score, out-of-town scores around the league, fantasy players tracking, social media updates, and more.  The update is available for iPhone, iPad, Android and BlackBerry.

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SitOrSquat: Restroom Finder

For those who are in the stadium, finding the nearest restroom may be easy thanks to signs pointing the way.  The only challenges are dealing with the long lines.  Tailgaters can opt for portable toilets or they can use this app to find the nearest public toilet.  No assurance if the toilets will be clean, but it’s probably better than the alternative.

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CooCoo

This service provides transportation schedules and mobile tickets.  The app is available for Android and iOS to help commuters get to the MetLife Stadium on time to avoid missing out on any of the action.  It delivers real-time transit schedules, train delays, alerts and cancellations, with new features such as socializing with other commuters by chatting with them or by posting advisories regarding a particular train, branch, or transit carrier.

photo credit: The Guise Archives via photopin cc