Janet Zink, Times staff writer
In Print: Tuesday, October 14, 2008
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, right, chats with Tampa booster Leonard Levy and Monsignor Laurence Higgins after the Super Bowl host committee luncheon on Monday.
TAMPA — What's the best way to ease your mind during an economic crisis?
Watch the Super Bowl.
That's what National Football League Commissioner Roger Goodell told a gathering of Tampa business leaders and elected officials Monday.
Goodell said it's too early to tell whether the economic downturn would cut into the usual influx of visitors and spending when the game is played in Tampa at Raymond James Stadium on Feb. 1.
But he said the NFL still expects more than 100,000 people to visit the region during the Super Bowl, shop at local stores and eat in local restaurants.
"They'll be here for several days. They'll spend a lot of money," he said.
But beyond that, he said, the Super Bowl will provide a welcome distraction from declining retirement accounts and rising foreclosures.
"It's a chance for everyone to come together and root for their favorite team, be a part of this special day and forget about their troubles, forget about what's going on around the world," Goodell said.
Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio said when the city first bid on the 2009 Super Bowl, it was about community pride. But in the current environment, it could have even more significance.
"My hope is a lot of people who are in the service industry will really benefit from this. People who are suffering because of this poor economy, people who are in the restaurant business, waiters and waitresses, people who are in the transportation business, like taxi drivers," she said. The county also would benefit from increased sales taxes as well as bed taxes paid in hotels, she said.
Goodell was in town for the luncheon to update the status of Super Bowl planning.
More than 6,400 people have volunteered to greet arriving guests at local hotels and airports, and the Super Bowl task force is at 80 percent of its $12-million fundraising goal, according to Dick Beard, chairman of the task force.
Janet Zink can be reached at jzink@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3401.
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