Rob Gronkowski will be on the sidelines watching the Super Bowl instead of playing one on Sunday, but he’ll still be a focal point of the game, at least when the matchup cuts to a commercial.
Gronkowski teamed up with FanDuel and legendary NFL kicker Adam Vinatieri in a live television commercial. Any FanDuel bettor who pays $5 or more will win a share of the $10 million if the former star tight end makes the field goal.
«This year, as we got closer to the Super Bowl, we wanted to do something on a much larger scale, and our marketing team with the support of Wieden+Kennedy said, ‘Listen, we want to have a moment that’s memorable. We want to be a part of the Super Bowl, we don’t want to be a part of another Super Bowl ad.’ And so, they came up with the idea of Rob Gronkowski kicking a field goal. He’s going to kick in the third quarter live: a 25-yard field goal «, Amy Howe, CEO of FanDuel, explained to Fox News Digital in a recent interview.
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Rob Gronkowski, #87 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, reacts after defeating the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV at Raymond James Stadium on February 7, 2021 in Tampa, Florida. (Mike Ehrman/Getty Images)
«It’s exciting. Rob has been an absolutely phenomenal partner, so he’s really taken clients on the journey with him. Agent calling training with Adam Vinatieri. As he said on ‘Jimmy Fallon’ the other day, he’s going to to make this field goal for America. It’s been a lot of fun, and the pickup is just phenomenal.»
Gronkowski retired from the NFL after the 2021 season, and despite several teams trying to lure him back onto the gridiron, he stayed out of the game and took many other opportunities.
Howe said it looked like Gronkowski was having «too much fun» to go back and play again.
«I think he’s having too much fun right now,» Howe said. «I mean, look what he’s (spending his time doing): streaming and this. And he’s just a great guy, and I’ll say he’s one of the most down-to-earth people you’ll ever meet. He and I are both Buffalonians, so He and I connect on that level.»
FanDuel is one of the leading online sportsbooks in the US, and many NFL fans will use the service to place bets on the Super Bowl game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles.
New England Patriots kicker Adam Vinatieri celebrates his game-winning field goal in the second half of Super Bowl XXXVI in New Orleans, Louisiana. (STAN HONDA/AFP via Getty Images)
He American Gaming Association (AGA) projected that at least $16 billion will be wagered on the game.
«It’s going to be huge for us,» Howe told Fox News Digital. «We project that we will have about 17 million bets on the platform. That’s more than double what we would have seen last year. There are three new states that were not online in the Super Bowl last year: Maryland, Ohio and Kansas. .
«As the market continues to open up, it’s been an opportunity for consumers to bet legally. If you look at the same AGA research, 70% of consumers who are going to want to bet on the Super Bowl want to bet on a legalized platform.» . . The demand is absolutely there. That’s what we’re seeing through our platform, and it’s going to be an exciting game.»
There will be dozens of prop bets to bet on during the game.
Howe said one of his favorites included the chance for both Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and Eagles center Jason Kelce to score a touchdown. The former is much more likely to do so, but unconventional players have scored a Super Bowl touchdown, from a William Perry rushing touchdown in Super Bowl XX to a Nick Foles receiving touchdown in Super Bowl LII.
«The Kelce Brothers: It’s the first time the brothers will face each other in the Super Bowl. So there’s a supporting bet that both Kelce brothers will actually score a touchdown. As a twin sister, I thought it was actually kind of fun Howe said.
Amy Howe, CEO of FanDuel Inc., speaks during the Bloomberg Power Players Summit in Los Angeles, California, USA, on Friday, February 11, 2022. (Lauren Justice/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
«Then there’s the other one that actually caught fire. Guessing the correct score has been one of the most popular prop bets, and I think right now there are over 30,000 bets on the Eagles to prevail 37-34 over the Chiefs, so That’s another kind of a fun one.»
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Super Bowl LVII will take place on Sunday at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The game will be broadcast on FOX.