THE SUPER BOWL is often regarded as the biggest sporting event in the US calendar.
Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots will go head to head for the biggest prize in American football in front of huge TV audiences worldwide.
Here is SunSport’s guide to the NFL’s showpiece championship game on February 4.
What is the Super Bowl and how do the playoffs work?
THINK of the Super Bowl as being like a cup final.
32 NFL teams compete in two conferences of 16 (AFC and NFC) during the regular-season, which are in turn split into eight smaller divisions of four.
The champions of each division automatically qualify for the post-season playoffs, along with two wildcard sides from each conference who are the best of the rest – so in total 12 franchises.
SUPER BOWL BUILD UP
You can watch the NFL playoffs on Now TV with prices starting at £6.99 for a Sports Pass. Or you can catch all the action on NFL Gamepass.
They then face off in a seeded order – but remain in AFC and NFC groupings – before following a traditional knockout system, with the top seeded sides receiving a bye until the Divisional (second) Round.
Two sides will make it through from there to the Conference Championships, which will produce two teams – an AFC champion and an NFC champion.
New England beat Jacksonville in the AFC Championship Game while Philadelphia thrashed Minnesota in the NFC Championship Game.
HOW TO WATCH THE PLAY-OFFS
You can watch the NFL playoffs on Sky this year as they’ll be broadcasting all the games live. You can become a subscriber here.
If you don’t want to sign up for Sky, you can watch the playoffs on NowTV with their Sky Sports pass starting from £6.99.
You can also sign up for NFL Game Pass’ playoff subscription which will let you watch all the games, including the Super Bowl, live and on demand
What channel is the Super Bowl on?
IF you’re watching in the UK, the options to watch the Super Bowl are endless.
Sky Sports will show all the action LIVE from Minneapolis from 10pm on Sunday night.
The game is available on Sky Sports Action, Sky Sports Main Event and also Sky Sports Mix – which is an entertainment channel and available without a sports subscription.
BBC will also be showing the grand finale LIVE from US Bank Stadium for free.
The league’s own streaming service NFL Game Pass will also have LIVE coverage from Minnesota.
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What time will it kick-off?
THIS years Super Bowl will be held at the impressive US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, which has a dome to keep out the cold.
It will take place on Sunday February 4, 2018 with kick off at 11.30pm UK time.
Minnesota is six hours behind Britain, meaning a 5.30pm start for the locals in the United States.
Who is playing the half-time show?
THE Super Bowl is known as much for its extravagant half-time show as it is the football.
Lady Gaga performed last year, belting out hits such as Poker Face, Born This Way and Bad Romance.
Booked for the second time, this years show will be performed by Justin Timberlake.
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He is appearing for the first time since the infamous Super Bowl 38 half-time performance where Janet Jackson had a wardrobe malfunction.
Where is the US Bank Stadium?
THIS season’s Super Bowl will take place at the US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
It’ll be 26 years since the city last hosted the event, way back in 1992 .
That game was held at the Herbert Humphrey Metrodome, which was torn down to make way for the current stadium.
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