For most fans, the Super Bowl is the biggest football game of the year. But it’s actually so much more than that. It’s about commercials, the halftime show, and gathering with friends for Super Bowl parties. Even Super Bowl bets aren’t just about football. Most online sportsbooks not only take bets related to the action on the field but also novelty props that aren’t inherently related to football.
These types of novelty props can be a lot of fun, especially for people who want to watch the game but aren’t football experts. Of course, it’s still important to do a little research on these bets rather than blindly make them. That’s why we wanted to share a list of some fun novelty props for Super Bowl LVIII and what you should know before placing a wager.
Coin Toss
For whatever reason, fans enjoy putting a bet on the coin toss before the Super Bowl. It’s probably because everyone knows they have a 50% chance of winning. Of course, there is no science to predicting the coin toss.
Some people prefer to go with heads while others say that “tails never fails.” In Super Bowl history, tails has a slight 30 to 27 lead over heads. But those results may not have much bearing on the coin toss for Super Bowl LVIII.
National Anthem
Another pre-game bet for fans involves the length of the national anthem. Every performer puts their own stamp on the national anthem, making it hard to predict if it’ll be quicker or longer than expected. There is usually an over/under of around two minutes for how long it takes to sing the national anthem with the average time being around one minute and 43 seconds.
However, there have been a handful of performers in the last decade who have gone beyond two minutes. Reba McEntire will have the honor of singing the national anthem before Super Bowl LVIII. Bettors have to decide if she’s the type of performer who will stretch out the song for as long as possible or get it over with quickly.
Gatorade Bath
Among post-game bets, the most famous Super Bowl novelty bet is the color of the Gatorade that will be poured on the winning coach. Over the last quarter-century, orange has been the most popular Gatorade color. However, blue has been more common in recent years, being used four times since 2015.
Last year, the Chiefs dumped purple Gatorade on coach Andy Reid after winning the Super Bowl. With the Chiefs playing in Super Bowl LVIII, purple Gatorade has the shortest odds with blue close behind while yellow, red, and orange are considered dark horse picks for the post-game Gatorade bath.
First Play – Run or Pass
Surprisingly, you don’t have to be a football expert to bet on whether the first play of the game will be a run or a pass. Granted, it helps a little to know the tendencies of both teams, especially the team that gets the ball first.
But similar to the coin toss, this is a 50-50 proposition. You should know that the NFL has become a pass-heavy league in recent years with teams becoming more aggressive offensively. However, it’s still the Super Bowl and most coaches like to play it safe on the first play with a simple running play. As a result, four of the last five Super Bowls have started with a running play, which is important to keep in mind.
Halftime Performance
Usher’s performance during halftime of Super Bowl LVIII will be the subject of novelty prop bets as well. Odds are usually given on what songs will be performed and what guest performers will show up unexpectedly. Needless to say, knowledge of Usher’s career is critical to making these types of prop bets.
Consider some of Usher’s biggest hits and what songs might be appreciated by the Super Bowl halftime audience. Likewise, think about Usher’s most successful collaborations when considering who might be joining him on stage during the Super Bowl LVIII halftime show.
Taylor Watch
A new type of novelty bet is being added for Super Bowl LVIII, and it involves Taylor Swift. The famous girlfriend of Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is performing in Japan the night before but is expected to make it to Las Vegas for the game. The question is how many times will TV cameras show Swift during the game? Some oddsmakers have an over/under of 6.5 times
Swift being shown on cameras. Obviously, there will be some level of interest in seeing her. However, the exact number of times could depend on how many big plays Kelce has in the game because that has been a strong indicator in past games for how often Swift makes a cameo on the broadcast.
