Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said the city is looking at a positive balance of $350M in terms of what was spent "in businesses and vendors, and in sales tax," during Super Bowl LI and its week-long lead-up, according to Olivia Tallet of the HOUSTON CHRONICLE. Turner said the "numbers are good." Tallet notes detailed numbers on the economic impact of the Super Bowl are "still being processed." But Turner said that the "biggest gain for the city was in public relations." Turner: "It was exceptional. In terms of (providing) a positive impression, the game was just the icing on the cake. ... People were very pleased with how the city performed and with us being a super host." He added, "Not only did we host the largest sporting event in the United States, but at the same time we did it without compromising our values" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 2/8).
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? In Houston, Andrea Rumbaugh reports AT&T customers inside NRG Stadium during Super Bowl LI "consumed more than 9.8 terabytes of data -- the equivalent of more than 28 million social media posts with photos -- and set a new mobile data record for any championship sporting event or football game on its network." Meanwhile, Verizon said that its customers used another 11 terabytes, up 57% from Super Bowl 50 at Levi's Stadium. Verizon said that is enough to "upload 3.7 million high-resolution digital photos." Rumbaugh writes the wireless data numbers are a "vindication for a stadium once derided as a black hole for connectivity and a relief for fans who were eager to share their experiences" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 2/8).
TIME FOR UPGRADES? In Houston, John McClain writes NRG Stadium "offered a good fan experience this year, but the 16-year-old venue is becoming dated compared to many Super Bowl hosting contenders." If Houston "wants to host another one, it's going to have to spend a lot of money to upgrade the stadium" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 2/8). Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, Harold Brubaker wrote Aramark was "among the winners" during Super Bowl LI. Aramark had "nearly 3,500 employees working during Super Bowl week in Houston" (PHILLY.com, 2/7).
