Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers Super Bowl Halftime Show

WHAT HAPPENED AT SUPER BOWL 2008?

The bid to host Super Bowl XLII, the finale of the 2007 season, was ultimately won by Phoenix, but, interestingly, the National Football League considered both New York and Washington, supposedly as a symbol of recovery from the 2001 September 11 terrorist attacks. The New York bid faltered on the lack of a suitable stadium, as neither Giants Stadium or the baseball stadiums had a roof, and the league has never held a Super Bowl in a cold weather climate in a stadium open to the elements due to the risk of weather-related disruption. Tampa was also considered, and the three finalists were, therefore, Tampa, Washington DC, and Phoenix.

Washington DC suffered from the same stadium- and climate-related problems as New York and, during the October 30th, 2003, meeting in Chicago, the League announced the University of Phoenix, Glendale, Arizona as hosts for Super Bowl XLII, to be played on February 3rd, 2008.

The 2008 Super Bowl is rightly regarded as one of the biggest upsets in the game and ranks as one of the best games in Super Bowl history.

The climax of the game came with New York in receipt of the ball on their own 17 yard line with only 2.39 remaining on the clock. They proceeded to drive the ball 83 yards with David Tyree completing a standout 32-yard gain by leaping and pinning the football to his helmet with one hand. The winning touchdown came with only 35 seconds remaining with a 13-yard reception by Giants receiver Plaxico Burress. The exciting finale to the game was in stark contrast to the slow moving 10-minute, 63 yard drive that consumed two thirds of the first quarter and ended in only a field goal.

Luckily even non-fans stayed tuned in, and the broadcast of the game broke the record (at that time) for most watched Super Bowl in history with an average 97.5 million viewers in the United States.

Final Score: New York Giants (NFC) – 17 versus New England Patriots (AFC) – 14
Date: February 3, 2008
Stadium: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
MVP: Eli Manning, Quarterback
Favorite: Patriots by 12 points
Referee: Mike Carey
Attendance: 71,101

National anthem: Jordin Sparks
Coin toss: Ronnie Lott, Jerry Rice, Steve Young, along with Bill Walsh’s children, Craig and Elizabeth.
Halftime show: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Halftime setlist:

  • American Girl
  • I Won’t Back Down
  • Free Fallin’
  • Runnin’ Down a Dream

The annual Playboy Super Saturday Party Night was held at the Wild Horse in Phoenix and featured models such as Holly Madison, Hollywood A-list actors Bradley Cooper and Kevin Connolly, and reality TV stars Lauren Conrad and Audrina Patridge.

Victoria’s Secret also hosted a ‘What is Sexy?’ themed star-studded event at Scotsdale’s Taste Ultra Lounge, attended by the likes of actress Katherine Heigl, along with musician husband Josh Kelly. Being a Victoria’s Secret party, there were plenty of angels in attendance, with Adrianna Lima, Selita Ebanks, and Karolina Kurkova raising temperatures with their own versions of the little black dress.

The annual Maxim party at the Fairmont Princess hotel was attended by Cindy Crawford, a host of Hollywood actors, headed by nip/tuck stars Julian McMahon and Dylan Walsh and topped off with a performance from Akon.

HOW MUCH DID SUPER BOWL TICKETS COST IN 2008? CLICK HERE TO READ OUR BLOG