Bids due today for Meadowlands Super Bowl

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An idea considered outlandish not too long ago -- playing a February Super Bowl outdoors in the Meadowlands -- takes a major step toward becoming reality today.

That's when formal bids for the 2014 Super Bowl are due to the NFL, and the joint effort by the Giants and Jets to land the big game continues to ride a wave of momentum.

Despite a bit of hard feelings between the two teams last month over how the Giants were awarded the first regular-season game at the new $1.7 billion showpiece, the New York-New Jersey bid remains the favorite over fellow entries Tampa and South Florida (Miami).

A straw poll of owners and owner representatives from 15 teams by The Post at the recent NFL annual meetings showed that 10 planned to vote for New York-New Jersey, three were undecided and just two opposed -- despite chances of a blizzard dampening pro football's showcase event.
New York-New Jersey also continues to enjoy the vocal (and highly influential) backing of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who voiced his support last month at the league meetings in Orlando.

"I'm not going to jump the gun and assume to speak for anybody, but I like the gist of what I'm hearing [from the other owners on New York-New Jersey's chances]," Giants co-owner John Mara told The Post at the league meetings.

The owners will make their final decision at league meetings May 24-26 in Dallas after a formal presentation by either the Giants' John Tisch or the Jets' Woody Johnson. New York-New Jersey would need approval from 24 of the 32 owners to land what will be Super Bowl XLVIII.

Today is the deadline for the initial bid. After some back-and-forth with the league, the final, formal bid is due May 1.

"We're going to have a really compelling bid," Mark Lamping, CEO of the New Meadowlands Stadium Company, told The Post. "If the owners can get to the point where they believe [in] a Super Bowl in a northern climate without a roof, we'll have put the best bid in front of them."

New York-New Jersey's unlikely bid as a one-time host got a huge boost in late February when Arizona pulled out of the running, leaving just Tampa and South Florida.

Because both of those cities hosted the Super Bowl the past two seasons, several league insiders said Arizona's surprise decision -- coupled with several high-profile endorsements -- made New York-New Jersey the frontrunner.

Several owners disputed that notion, with Buffalo's Ralph Wilson the most vocal, but confidence on the part of New York-New Jersey organizers is rising along with everything else at the gleaming new 82,000-seat stadium in East Rutherford.

The New York organizers hope to strengthen already solid support of their bid from area corporate and government sources by soon releasing a study that it claims the 2014 Super Bowl would inject more than $500 million into the local economy.

Lamping, though, admits the weather remains his group's biggest obstacle.

Average temperatures here are 31 degrees in early February, and blizzards are always a possibility. Many observers just can't see corporate types paying $1,000 or more per ticket for the Super Bowl willing to endure a snowstorm.

But the New York-New Jersey organizers say they will use the runaway success of the NHL's outdoor Winter Classic as a prominent part of a presentation that will end up costing the Jets and Giants $1 million combined.

Lamping said New York-New Jersey organizers aren't nearly as concerned about the second-biggest question mark tagged to their bid: logistics.
Worries about shuttling fans and the two teams between events in Manhattan and New Jersey are easily calmed by the area's first-rate public transportation, Lamping said, most notably the new rail line directly to the stadium.

"Nobody can offer what we offer here in New York," Lamping said. "We have everything. And if we get this, there's no doubt in my mind that we're going to put on a first-class game."


Sizing up the contenders

Post NFL reporter Bart Hubbuch breaks down the cities vying to host the 2014 Super Bowl.

NEW YORK-NEW JERSEY (Odds: 2-1)

Population: 19 million in the tri-state area.

Super Bowls hosted: Zero.

What it’s got: Beautiful new stadium, Broadway, Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, world’s best pizza, fun, excitement.

Working against it: Playing outdoors in New Jersey in February.
TAMPA (Odds: 7-1)

Population: 2.7 million. Super Bowls hosted: 4.

What it’s got: Heat, traffic, strip clubs, Busch Gardens, Waffle House, Yankees spring training.

Working against it: Location is too “United States of Generic-a,” and the weather in February can be no picnic, either.

SOUTH FLORIDA (Odds: 30-1)

Population: 4.9 million. Super Bowls hosted: 10.

What it’s got: Humidity, foreclosures (lots of them), Eurotrash, South Beach, art deco, stone crab.

Working against it: No public money is available to fund much-needed stadium renovations.


 

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