EXPERT ADVISORY – February 6, 2025 – R0020
As the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles prepare to face off for the second time in three years this Sunday, Brock University experts are weighing in on the storylines poised to make Super Bowl LIX one of the most talked-about championships in recent history.
Associate Professor of Health Sciences and Sport Management Janelle Joseph has been taking a critical look at the NFL’s messaging and racial justice in the lead-up to the big game. For the first time since 2021, the league will not display the “End Racism” slogan in the end zones, opting instead to display “Choose Love” and “It Takes All of Us” — a move Joseph says is emblematic of the NFL’s “performative actions” when it comes to social justice.
“While the NFL uses these slogans to signal a commitment to racial justice, we must ask whether these messages are backed by meaningful actions, especially in areas like hiring practices and the treatment of athletes,” says Joseph, who is also the Founder and Director of the IDEAS Research Lab at the University of Toronto, which explores issues of Indigeneity, diaspora, equity and anti-racism in sport.
Joseph says gestures like end zone slogans may be well-meaning, but they often fail to address the deeper structural and cultural barriers that continue to marginalize racialized communities in sport.
“True change requires more than just shifting symbols,” she says. “It requires dismantling the systems that perpetuate inequality within the league.”
With Kendrick Lamar poised to headline the halftime show, Joseph says the artist’s long-standing commitment to social justice also provides the league with an opportunity to potentially match its rhetoric with action.
“Lamar’s voice can be a powerful tool for challenging the status quo, but the NFL needs to match his message with real action that goes beyond spectacle,” Joseph says. “Otherwise, it risks becoming another example of capitalizing on activism without enacting real change.”
Assistant Professor of Sport Management Ryan Clutterbuck, an expert in organizational behaviour and sport leadership, also critiques the NFL’s pattern of enacting symbolic gestures over substantive change.
“The removal of ‘End Racism’ may be influenced by political pressures — including high-profile figures including President Donald Trump attending these events — but ‘Choose Love’ feels like a reaction to the recent terror attacks and violence in New Orleans, aiming for unity but missing the deeper racial justice concerns,” he says.
Beyond its messaging, Clutterbuck also says the NFL has exhibited a persistent failure in regard to diversity leadership.
“The league’s player base is predominantly people of colour, yet white executives and coaches still dominate leadership. Despite the Rooney Rule, minority hiring stagnates,” Clutterbuck says of the NFL policy requiring teams to interview minority candidates for head coaching and other senior positions. “In the latest coaching cycle, only one of six hires was a minority, revealing the gap between rhetoric and action.”
He also says that while “changing a slogan is easy, the true challenge is shifting the power dynamics that determine leadership opportunities in the sport.”
Dean of the Goodman School of Business and Associate Professor of Organizational Behaviour Barry Wright says players will also be feeling the weight of the history-making potential of the matchup on the field.
Kansas City, for instance, is seeking to become the first NFL franchise to win three consecutive championships, with quarterback Patrick Mahomes also setting sights on a potential fifth Super Bowl victory.
“Research on the Yerkes-Dodson Inverted-U Theory suggests that both excessive and insufficient pressure can negatively impact performance,” says Wright, who holds a PhD in Management and a Master of Arts in Psychology of Sport and explores how pressure affects athletic performance in high-stakes situations. “For example, field goal kickers facing a game-winning moment may feel immense pressure, leading to physical and mental tightening that interferes with execution. Conversely, too little pressure may cause lapses in focus, leading to unexpected errors.”
Wright expects both teams to be well prepared for handling this pressure, however, through a combination of relaxation and activation strategies designed to optimize performance.
Pressure will also be mounting off the field.
Viewers will be tuning in to see NFL legend Tom Brady’s highly anticipated Super Bowl debut in the booth, a role the broadcaster deemed valuable enough to warrant a record-breaking 10-year, $375-million contract.
Assistant Professor of Sport Management Taylor McKee notes that while the Super Bowl remains a football game at its core, its mechanics differ significantly from a typical NFL contest.
“The broadcast is extended, sometimes exceeding four hours, with frequent reviews and an extended halftime show that disrupts the normal rhythm of play,” McKee says. “Tom Brady, in his Super Bowl broadcasting debut, will have to balance his deep game knowledge with making the broadcast accessible to casual viewers.”
Despite Brady’s iconic status, McKee says his draw will be limited in this new capacity.
“While Brady’s presence in the booth will generate buzz, the overall impact on viewership will likely be minimal, as the Super Bowl is an entertainment spectacle first and foremost,” he says.
Associate Professor of Health Sciences and Sport Management Janelle Joseph, Assistant Professors of Sport Management Ryan Clutterbuck and Taylor McKee, and Dean of the Goodman School of Business and Associate Professor of Organizational Behaviour Barry Wright are available for media interviews on this topic.
For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:
*Maryanne St. Denis, Manager, Content and Communications, Brock University, [email protected] or 905-246-0256
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