Does the cold weather Super Bowl make sense?

“And if it ain’t broke then don’t try to fix it.”
-Will Smith, Summertime

So…that just happened.  Your 2014 Super Bowl will be played outdoors at the Giants/Jets still yet unnamed stadium.  And while you’ll hear and see plenty of people excited and happy about this decision (Fox Network which will broadcast the game, the Giants and Jets because the money on their naming rights deal just went way up, the city of New York, etc.), I personally don’t see the logic behind the move.

The NFL is a roughly $9 billion dollar a year business, revenue-wise.  The Super Bowl is its crowning event, and it pulled in over 100 million viewers in the U.S. last year…a number that would seemingly increase as the years progress.  More than just the Super Bowl game itself, the week leading up to the Super Bowl is an event.  Corporate parties, promotional events, blah, blah, blah…that’s where the revenue is generated.  Depending on who you ask, hosting a Super Bowl can generate roughly $300 million for the host city.  Instant. Economic. Impact.  Now lets throw a random variable into the mix that may have an effect on the events leading up to the Super Bowl and the number of viewers…

Oh…weather in New York. In February…Yeah, that should about do it.

How many football fans continue to watch a Super Bowl featuring last year’s teams (Colts/Saints) if there’s a foot of snow on the ground and its purely a running contest?  I mean no disrespect, but the last time I checked, football fans weren’t tuning in to to watch Joseph Addai and Pierre Thomas run for 3 yards in snow.  Why even put the idea of weather effecting the marketability of your largest event into the equation?  And the various events leading up to the Super Bowl…sure, you can hold them indoors, but what about moving to and from the various events?  If New York experiences a snow storm during Super Bowl week, doesn’t that have the potential to keep people from making it to the various events and spending their money, thus lessening the positive economic impact a city receives from hosting the Super Bowl? (although the insane amount people will pay for hospitality packages will offset some of the negative impact)  In short,

Does the positive effect of having the Super Bowl in New York outweigh the potential negative impact of a weather disaster?

I really want to know.  I see the potential…but when you’re throwing variables into the mix…I just don’t get it.  Of course, the NFL is run by men and women much smarter than myself, so maybe my naiveté is on full display.   In the meantime, I’ll leave you with this quote from Fox Sports’ David Hill,

“Having the Super Bowl in the new home of the Jets and Giants is fantastic.  It’s the biggest sports event in the country on the country’s biggest stage.  It’s different, and should create buzz for months leading up to it and if we’re really lucky, it will begin snowing right after halftime.” Fox Sports Media Group Chairman/CEO David Hill (via FangsBites)

Umm…yeah…if we’re lucky.