Tom Brady’s Patriots, the reigning NFL champions, beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 24-20 in the AFC Championship match while the Eagles progressed with a 38-7 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship game. Pats quarterback Brady, who has five Super Bowl rings, goes up against Nick Foles, who came into the Eagles side because of the injury to regular QB Carson Wentz.
Can the Eagles cause an upset against the Patriots? We look at the Super Bowl LII predictions, betting odds and how to watch on TV in the UK.
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What: New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles
When: 4 February 2018
Where: U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Start time: 11.30pm UK time
How to watch the NFL Super Bowl on TV in the UK
Sky Sports and the BBC will show live coverage of Super Bowl LII.
Who won the last Super Bowl?
The reigning champions are the New England Patriots, led by superstar quarterback Tom Brady. He masterminded the Patriots to an epic 34-28 comeback victory against the Atlanta Falcons in 2017.
Super Bowl LII latest betting odds
The latest Super Bowl betting prices, according to Oddschecker, as of 29 January:
New England Patriots: 8/15 fav
Philadelphia Eagles: 2/1
Patriots vs. Eagles predictions
We round-up the media predictions head of Super Bowl LII.
Richard Janvrin, Bleacher Report: “If Carson Wentz was the quarterback for the Eagles in this game, they would win - they’re just the better team. [Nick] Foles has done what he’s had to do to get to this point. He’s not some wide-eyed rookie, but this is the Super Bowl after all. The Patriots are just too good and will execute on all fronts. I’m siding with the public here on giving the Eagles the points, but the Patriots, Brady and Belichick will hoist their sixth Lombardi. Prediction: Patriots 28, Eagles 25.”
David Steele, Sporting News: “The Eagles are great enough to not be such big underdogs against the Patriots. They’re great enough to beat them, keep that trophy collection in Foxborough at five, and finally start one of their own. They’re great enough to etch into the history books, ‘Nick Foles beat Tom Brady in the Super Bowl’.”
Eliot Shorr-Parks, NJ.com: “The Eagles have one of the best defences in the NFL, and they have earned that title by making plays throughout the season. Heading into the play-offs, the Eagles forced 31 turnovers in 16 regular season games, an average of almost two per game. Super Bowls can turn and be won on just one play, and the Eagles’ defence has shown they are capable of making big plays when it matters most.”
NFL guide: teams, season structure and scoring
How many teams are there in the NFL?
The National Football League (NFL) is made up of 32 teams, and the winner is crowned at the end-of-season Super Bowl. As NFL.com explains, the league’s 32 teams are split into two conferences - the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The 16 teams in each conference are then split into the East, North, South and West divisions. Each division has four teams.
How does the NFL season work?
The regular season lasts 17 weeks, during which each team plays 16 matches. At the end of the regular season, the top team in each conference’s four divisions, plus each conference’s two teams (wild cards) with the next-best records, qualify for the play-offs. The 12 teams are seeded by their win-loss record. The Wild Card Round and Division Round lead to the Conference Championship Round, where the top two teams battle it out to become the NFC and the AFC champions. The two Conference champions then meet at the Super Bowl.
How do the NFL teams line up?
If you’re new to American football then a great place to start is by reading NFL.com’s beginner’s guide. According to the guide, the two teams line up in the following way: one 11-man team has possession of the football and is called the offence and the other 11-man team is the defence. A match is split into four 15-minute quarters, with a 12-minute half-time break.
How are points scored?
The object of the game is to score more points than the opposition. There are four ways to keep the scoreboard ticking over. A touchdown is worth six points; conversions get one or two points; field goals are three points; and a safety is worth two points.
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