Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots to Face Off in Super Bowl LX

The 60th Super Bowl will feature the top teams in the NFL, but the game is also a major business event with high-stakes commercials and military involvement.

Feb. 6, 2026 at 2:23pm

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The Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots will meet on February 7 to play in the 60th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The Super Bowl is not just a major cultural event in the United States, but also an enormous business with deep ties to the U.S. military and questions around the sport's relationship to violence in American society.

Why it matters

The Super Bowl is the most highly viewed television program of the year in the United States, making it a prime advertising opportunity for major brands. However, the game's relationship with the military and the inherent violence of the sport have raised concerns about its broader societal impact.

The details

In the past, the U.S. military was found to be secretly paying the NFL for staging flags, honoring veterans, and other patriotic displays at games, essentially using the league for recruitment advertising. While this practice has since been stopped, the military's involvement in the Super Bowl continues, with flyovers and other displays that require significant resources. Additionally, the violent nature of football, with its high risk of career-ending injuries, has led to questions about whether the sport is contributing to violence in American society, including spikes in domestic abuse following games.

  • The 60th Super Bowl will take place on February 7, 2026.
  • In the early 2010s, a senatorial committee led by Jeff Flake and John McCain exposed that the U.S. military was paying the NFL for patriotic displays at games.

The players

Seattle Seahawks

One of the teams competing in Super Bowl LX, the Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington.

New England Patriots

The other team competing in Super Bowl LX, the Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston region.

Jeff Flake

A former U.S. senator who led a committee that exposed the U.S. military's secret payments to the NFL for patriotic displays at games.

John McCain

A former U.S. senator who also served on the committee that exposed the U.S. military's secret payments to the NFL.

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What they’re saying

“There was a scandalous phase where it emerged in the early 2010s that the U.S. military was paying the NFL. So, this was actually just secret advertising, but de facto, the NFL was receiving funds from the U.S. military for the staging of flags at the beginning of games, the honoring of veterans, the whole works.”

— Adam Tooze, Economist and FP columnist (Ones and Tooze podcast)

“It's completely normal to watch an American football game and see somebody experience a career-threatening, if not career-ending, injury. In fact, you can watch a game and see several people suffer that kind of disastrous fate, and it ruins their lives.”

— Adam Tooze, Economist and FP columnist (Ones and Tooze podcast)

What’s next

The Super Bowl LX matchup between the Seahawks and Patriots is expected to be a highly anticipated and closely watched game, with both teams vying for the championship title.

The takeaway

The Super Bowl has become not just a major cultural event, but also a massive business enterprise with deep ties to the U.S. military and broader questions about the sport's relationship to violence in American society. As the 60th edition of the game approaches, these issues will likely continue to be scrutinized and debated.