Why are the Eagles the home team for Super Bowl 59? How NFL decides home, away teams
Super Bowl 59 may be in a neutral venue, but the box scores will indicate that the Philadelphia Eagles were the home team on Sunday, while the Kansas City Chiefs will be filling the role of the road team.
The NFL may pick Super Bowl venues years in advance, but things like team record and geography aren't factors in who the "home" team is once the AFC and NFC champions collide. Kansas City's superior record this season isn't relevant, and you don't have to figure out which team happens to be closer to the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
The league has a system in place, and the outcome for this year's Super Bowl is that Philadelphia will go into the record books as playing a home game. That might not be the blessing that it seems, as away teams have won roughly 55% of Super Bowls over the years.
Here's what to know about how the NFL sorted out who the home team is at Super Bowl 59:
Super Bowl 59: How NFL decides which team is home, away
Going all the way back to the very first Super Bowl in 1967, a very simple system has been in place for sorting who the home and away teams are. In Super Bowl 1, played at the LA Coliseum, the NFC's Green Bay Packers were the "home" team.
Since then, the conferences have traded off, with the AFC being the home team in even-numbered years, and the NFC taking the odd-numbered years.
Who is the home team for Super Bowl 59?
The Philadelphia Eagles are the home team for Super Bowl 59, while the Kansas City Chiefs have been designated as the away team. The fact that the Chiefs had a better record, or are the defending champions, is irrelevant. The NFL's policy of alternating which conference champion gets to be the home team is what settles the issue.
The game is at a neutral venue (New Orleans' Caesars Superdome), but the NFL still elects a home and away team to sort through a couple of procedural issues. Being the home team, the Eagles get first pick on their uniform, obliging the Chiefs to pick something that contrasts. On the (literal) flip side, Kansas City will be asked to call the coin toss to determine who kicks off to start the game.
How to watch Super Bowl 2025: Time, TV channel, streaming
Super Bowl 59 will be broadcast nationwide on Fox. Streaming options include Fubo, which is offering a free trial for new subscribers, or Tubi.
- Date: Sunday, Feb. 9
- Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
- TV: Fox
- Streaming: Fubo, Tubi
- Location: Caesars Superdome (New Orleans)
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