Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix readying to welcome Super Bowl teams

The home of the Phoenix Suns will be a home for NFL and Super Bowl 57 events next week, with the big game in town and big spaces needed for celebrations of the league and its fans.

Footprint Center on Friday morning was being re-arranged and set up for Monday's Super Bowl Opening Night presented by Fast Twitch, which makes its in-person return to the Super Bowl Week events schedule after the past two years of having gone virtual due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Suns are on the road for the next five games and their next home game is on Feb. 14.

For $20 each, fans can be there when Super Bowl players and coaches from the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs are interviewed by media members for the first time after the teams arrive in the Phoenix area. It's the only public appearance for the teams before the game, and the only time the two teams will be together in one place prior to Super Bowl Sunday.

Ten players from each team plus their head coaches will answer questions for an hour.

The event will also have live entertainment, special appearances and autograph signings by former NFL players and team mascots, photo opportunities for fans and the chance to win prizes such as two tickets to Super Bowl 57 by checking into the event via the Super Bowl OnePass app.

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Doors open at 4 p.m., a pre-show goes from 5 to 6 featuring giveaways, and the Eagles players will speak to reporters from 6 to 7. A joint team moment with team captains will take place and the Kelce brothers, Travis of the Chiefs and Jason of the Eagles, will take the stage around 7:15 p.m.

The Chiefs' 10 players and head coach Andy Reid take their turn with media from 8 to 9 p.m.

Fans can listen to the comments from interview feeds on the arena floor via the app, and are encouraged to bring their own headphones to do so.

"It's really coming from our commissioner (Roger Goodell), he wants us to have as many accessible fan events as possible," said Nicki Ewell, NFL senior director of events. "So the fans aren't going to be on the floor. They're going to be in the seats, but it's still a chance to see our participating teams in person live. And it's 20 dollars, so it's almost cheaper than a movie ticket to come down and see the potential Super Bowl champions take the stage."

The setup on Friday consisted of a wide platform built on top of the Suns' basketball court, which reduces the arena's seating capacity by removing the courtside seats and some of the first rows on the lower level. After Monday, Footprint Center will become a live music venue for the Super Bowl 57 Music Fest next Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Tickets for Super Bowl Opening Night presented by Fast Twitch are available at SuperBowl.com/OpeningNight.

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