Sports are one of those societal things that bring us together. Even if by "together," we mean crammed into an overheated bar in the dead of winter and overpaying for wings.
That's clearly not happening this year, with COVID-19. And without a crowd to watch it with, the Super Bowl is going to seem a lot different. Oracle surveyed 2,000 people who plan on watching Super Bowl LV about what's changed for them—and for one thing, 23% of respondents plan to watch alone this year, compared with 11% in a typical year (see the full infographic below).
One of the benefits to watching by yourself, though, is being able to wear whatever you want. Which is certainly something a few people are looking forward to doing. Among those surveyed, 6% said they will be wearing underwear or perhaps nothing at all. (Of course, this can also happen at bars as the night wears on.) Loungewear has never been so popular as it is now, and that will be the outfit of choice for 21% of those watching.
If you're decent enough to appear in a video chat, then you could join the 8% who will be attending a virtual party. These online festivities are made easier since you can stream the Super Bowl from anywhere. A party host can share their screen with everyone on a Zoom call; or if everyone has Hulu Plus Live TV, they can use the Teleparty browser extension.
Even for those who are not so interested in the game itself, the commercials are something to look forward to, with 11% planning to watch only the ads. The stakes are high this year: 25% are more excited than ever about the ads, and 33% expect them to be better than last year's. As for what constitutes "better," we all could use a laugh right now, and 55% say that humor is the top reason to watch the ads in the first place.
You don't have to wait until Sunday for the ads, by the way. Believe it or not, this Jason Alexander one is already here.
