University of Minnesota students plan to host celebrations ahead of the Super Bowl to connect with friends and maintain traditions. 

This year’s Super Bowl, on Feb. 11 in Las Vegas, will have the Kansas City Chiefs playing the San Francisco 49ers for the Lombardi Trophy to mark the conclusion of the 2023 National Football League (NFL) season. 

Baraa Al-Jasim, a third-year chemistry and Asian and Middle Eastern studies student, said she will watch the Super Bowl at her house with friends. She added watching sports as a woman is all about showing passion for the game. 

“Nowadays, you see, out in the stands, women or families together,” Al-Jasim said. “Since we’re all constantly surrounded by sports teams of both genders, both of them are hyped up in sports.” 

Al-Jasim got into sports after she prioritized health and fitness by working out, which led to her following sports on TV. 

“I like to keep up with the latest updates in the sport and I like the enthusiastic environment the sport brings,” Al-Jasim said. 

Al-Jasim said she is rooting for the 49ers to win because of the team’s ability to win many games, and she does not know much about the Chiefs. 

For Colby Pitzenberger, a third-year political science student and member of the Sigma Pi fraternity on campus, the Super Bowl is a time for connection with his fraternity brothers, especially those who recently joined. 

“It’s really important when you have new members to invite them to as many things as possible and make sure they feel welcome,” Pitzenberger said. 

Sigma Pi will host a pregame party on Feb. 10 open to anyone with personal connections to their members, according to Pitzenberger. Members plan to host a potluck and hang out in their house to watch the game on Sunday. 

Pitzenberger never had an interest in sports until this season, adding that the relationship between Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and musician Taylor Swift got him interested in football. 

He said he is joining his fraternity brothers in rooting for the Chiefs to win the Super Bowl. 

“I’m still learning [football], but I think the games are mildly interesting to watch now,” Pitzenberger said. “That’s the biggest part for me right now is just being able to get together with people and being able to hang out and talk while also bonding over mutual interests.” 

Other students have been following football for a long time, like Luke Wittner, a third-year student majoring in qualitative economics and finance, meaning the Super Bowl is a time for him to share his passion with others.

Wittner plans to go to his friend’s Super Bowl party in downtown Minneapolis, which will have a lot of young people and their parents in attendance. He is rooting for the 49ers to win the Super Bowl and looks forward to spending it with his friends. 

“I think it’s going to be really great to be in that environment with them and just kind of chill,” Wittner said. 

Wittner added it will be an opportunity for him to get to know new people and reconnect with friends. 

“Before I went to college, I would always watch it with my friends from high school, but now that I’m in college and live in a house with 15 people, we would always have a watch party,” Wittner said. 

Wittner, who played football for 10 years and is a Green Bay Packers fan, said his Super Bowl celebrations in college are similar to celebrations in his hometown, where he would watch the game and have food made by his mom. 

“It’s really great to be able to share this with my friends and celebrate and everyone gets into it,” Wittner said. “We just talk nothing but football for four hours straight.”