Super Bowl LVII community events to make positive impact in Arizona
Efforts focus on social justice, sustainability, youth wellness, military appreciation, among other causes
NEW YORK – Super Bowl LVII will impact the Arizona community with more than 30 charitable activities and outreach events that will enrich the community and provide lasting legacies long after the game is played.
Super Bowl Week activities include community projects made possible by NFL Foundation Super Bowl Legacy Grants and the Super Bowl LVII Host Committee, community greening projects, Salute to Service events to honor our military and veterans, NFL PLAY 60 Kids Day and a series of volunteer projects involving the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award presented by Nationwide nominees.
As part of Inspire Change, the league’s social justice initiative, the NFL will work with three local community organizations to address the digital divide and the way it impacts youth. Working with Chicanos Por La Causa, the Greater Phoenix Urban League, and Native American Connections and non-profit Compudopt, the NFL will provide laptops to hundreds of children impacted by unequal access to technology via a grant from the NFL Foundation.
Throughout the week the NFL will honor, empower, and connect with the military community through a number of Salute to Service-centered events. The week will kick off with Military Appreciation Day at Super Bowl Experience presented by Lowe’s followed by the USA Wheelchair Football League Championships. With support from an NFL and Bob Woodruff Foundation Salute to Service grant, Move United started a USA Wheelchair Football League for athletes with disabilities, including veterans. During Super Bowl week, a Championship Game will showcase the sport and invite NFL Legends to serve as honorary captains. NFL representatives will also visit Luke Air Force Base as part of its Community Day to meet and interact with service members from the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force, including the pilots conducting the Super Bowl LVII flyover.
The NFL will support the LGBTQ community throughout the week in Arizona in a number of ways. A Night of Pride with GLAAD, presented by Smirnoff is an evening of music, cocktails, and interview-style conversations with GLAAD, NFL friends, and partners to spotlight advances in and the future of LGBTQ inclusion in professional sports as well as the NFL’s commitment to former and current LGBTQ players and LGBTQ league members. The NFL will also welcome youth and their families from one-n-ten, a Phoenix-area nonprofit dedicated to serving and assisting LGBTQ individuals, for a special flag football clinic, featuring members of the Gay Flag Football League, at Super Bowl Experience. These youth will also receive allyship cards written by current and former NFL players to express their support for them as members of the LGBTQ community.
The Super Bowl LVII Business Connect program brings together 200+ companies who participated in the year-long program designed to bring Super Bowl-related contract opportunities, professional development and networking opportunities to local, diverse businesses in the Phoenix area. In partnership with the Business Connect team and the Arizona Super Bowl Host Committee, the woman, minority, LGBTQ+, and veteran-owned companies in the program worked to participate in both virtual and in-person business development workshops to prepare their businesses to compete for Super Bowl LVII contracts and jobs the game will bring to Arizona.
Business Connect suppliers have secured contracts to work a myriad of jobs over the 10 days of events leading up to Super Bowl LVII including catering, transportation, entertainment, décor, staging, barricades, construction at State Farm Stadium to meet Gameday needs and more.
High school football student-athletes and coaches will be celebrated by the NFL with two separate events at the Super Bowl, highlighting the values and fun associated with the game of football, Play Football High School Day at the Super Bowl Experience presented by Lowe’s and the Play Football Family Festival.
The NFL seeks to leave a lasting legacy in the surrounding communities of the Super Bowl host city with the Super Bowl Legacy Grant Program, made possible by an annual $1 million contribution from the NFL Foundation and matched by the Super Bowl Host Committee. This year, the NFL and the Arizona Super Bowl Host Committee will support local nonprofits with proven track records of benefiting underserved Arizonans. Selected nonprofits focus their work within the following pillars: Education: improving access to quality education for youth; Health & Wellness: improving the overall well-being of residents, primarily youth; Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Social Justice: driving positive action for equality and accessibility; and Environment & Sustainability: implementing food recovery and recycling initiatives.
SCHEDULE CALENDAR LISTED BY DATE
Events in Phoenix unless otherwise noted
| Date | Name of Event | Topic | Time | Location | Contact |
| Thursday, Feb. 2 | Super Bowl LIV Business Connect Celebration | Business Connect | 5:30-8:30 p.m. | Warehouse 215 (215 E. Grants St.) | BJ Waymer, |
| Sunday, Feb. 5 | Military Appreciation Day at SBX | Salute to Service | 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. | Super Bowl Experience Presented by Lowe’s at the Phoenix Convention Center (100 N. 3rd St.) | Dan Lessard,
|
| Monday, Feb. 6 | Special Olympics Unified Flag Football Game | Community | 1-3 p.m. | Valley Vista High School (15550 N. Parkview Pl, Surprise, Ariz.) | Jordyn White, |
| Tuesday, Feb. 7 | NFL Character Playbook Speaker Series Event | Character Education | 9-11 a.m. | Desert Sands Middle School (6308 W. Campbell Ave.) | Jordyn White, |
| Tuesday, Feb. 7 | Vincent Country Safe Zone Activity Day | Community | 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Bernard Black Entrepreneurial Academy (6550 S. 27th Ave.)) | Traci Otey Blunt, |
| Tuesday, Feb. 7 | NFL/American Cancer Society Crucial Catch Health Center Tour | Community | 12-2 p.m. | Adelante Healthcare (13471 W. Cornerstone Blvd, Goodyear, AZ) | Lindsey Shirley at lindsey.shirley@cancer.org |
| Tuesday, Feb. 7 | Salute to Service Wheelchair Football League Championship Game | Salute to Service | 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. | Camelback Ranch (10710 W. Camelback Rd.) | Dan Lessard,
|
| Tuesday, Feb. 7 | Representation Matters: Increasing Diversity in Sports Business | Social Justice | N/A | Downtown Phoenix | Dean Cline, |
| Tuesday, Feb. 7 | Salute to Veterans Night | Salute to Service | 4-6 p.m. | U.S. VETS (12027 N 28th Dr.)
|
Dan Lessard,
|
| Tuesday, Feb. 7 | Salute to Service 100 Yards of Hope Screening | NFL Green | 7-9 p.m. | OdySea Aquarium (located in the Arizona Boardwalk, 9500 East Via de Ventura, Scottsdale) | Dan Lessard,
|
| Wednesday, Feb. 8 | NFL PLAY 60 Kids Day | PLAY 60 – Youth Event | 9:30 a.m.– 12:30 p.m. | Super Bowl Experience presented by Lowe’s at the Phoenix Convention Center (100 N. 3rd St.) | Jordyn White, |
| Wednesday, Feb. 8 | Inspire Change Super Bowl Celebration | Inspire Change | 4:30-6:30 p.m. | Kiwanis Park (5500 S Mill Ave, Tempe, AZ 85283) | Morgan Rubin, morgan.rubin@nfl.com
|
| Wednesday, Feb. 8 | A Night of Pride with GLAAD | Diversity, Equity and Inclusion | 7-10 p.m. | Sheraton Downtown Phoenix | Morgan Rubin, morgan.rubin@nfl.com |
| Wednesday, Feb. 8 | Super Bowl Soulful Celebration | Community | 7:30 p.m. | Mesa Arts Center | Tosha Whitten, tosha@frontpagefirm.com |
| Thursday, Feb. 9 | Super Bowl Legacy Grant Press Conference | Community | 11:30 a.m. | 1401 E Van Buren St. | Jordyn White, |
| Thursday, Feb. 9 | NFL PLAY 60 Super Bowl LVII Fitness Break Broadcast | PLAY 60 – Youth Event | 10 a.m. | VIRTUAL | Linzy Cotaya, |
| Thursday, Feb. 9 | Luke Air Force Base Visit | Salute to Service | 11 a.m. | Luke Air Force Base (14185 Falcon St, Luke AFB, AZ 85309) | Dan Lessard,
|
| Thursday, Feb. 9 | Players Coalition «Media Mornings» | Players Coalition | 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. | Phoenix Convention Center (100 N. 3rd St.) | Lindsay Means, |
| Thursday, Feb. 9 | Fritz Pollard Alliance Foundation will host its 18th Annual Johnnie L. Cochran, Jr., Salute to Excellence Awards | Diversity, Equity and Inclusion | 12 p.m. | Courtyard Phoenix Downtown (132 S. Central Ave.) | Traci Otey Blunt, |
| Thursday, Feb. 9 | NFL Unsung Heroes Celebration | Community | 9:30-11:30 a.m. | The Churchill (901 N 1st St.)). | Jordyn White, |
| Thursday, Feb. 9 –
Friday, Feb. 10 |
Players Coalition Fan Food Activations | Players Coalition | 3 p.m. | Phoenix Convention Center (100 N. 3rd St.) | Lindsay Means, |
| Thursday, Feb. 9 | One-N-Ten and PGFFL Community Event | Community | 4-6 p.m. | Super Bowl Experience presented by Lowe’s at the Phoenix Convention Center (100 N. 3rd St.) | Jordyn White, |
| Thursday, Feb. 9 – Friday, Feb. 11 | CPR Instruction provided by American Heart Association | Community | Super Bowl Experience Operating Hours | Super Bowl Experience Presented by Lowe’s at the Phoenix Convention Center (100 N. 3rd St.) | Linzy Cotaya, |
| Friday, Feb. 10 | Super Bowl Career Fair | Player Care Foundation | 10:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel (100 N. 1st St.) | A’Maiya Allen
|
| Friday, Feb. 10 | Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Event | Community | 9:30-11:30 a.m. | Bob and Renee Parsons Boys and Girls Club (1601 W Sherman St.)) | Jordyn White. |
| Friday, Feb. 10 | Play Football High School Day | Youth Football | 4-7:30 p.m. | Super Bowl Experience Presented by Lowe’s at Phoenix Convention Center (100 N. 3rd St.) | Avis Roper, |
| Saturday, Feb. 11 | Super Bowl Breakfast | Award Ceremony | 8-10 a.m. | JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort and Spa (5350 E Marriott Dr.) | Darrin Gray, darrin.gray@athletesinaction.org |
| Saturday, Feb. 11 | Play Football Family Festival | Youth Football | 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. | Hamilton High School (3700 S. Arizona Ave., Chandler, 95248) | Avis Roper, |
| Saturday, Feb. 11 | 3rd Annual Madden NFL x HBCU Tournament with EA | HBCU/Gaming | 1 p.m. | NFL YouTube Channel | Liana Bailey, |
| Saturday, Feb. 11 | Taste of the NFL | Charity Event | 4-8 p.m. | Chateau Luxe (1175 E. Lone Cactus Dr.) | Eric Slutsky, |
