The “Packer Mobile” cruises by Cowboys Stadium as Mark “The Ice Man” Madson (on car) and Dieter “The Snow Man” Sturm enjoy the sunny weather as they cheer for the Pack before Super Bowl XLV. (Louis DeLuca/The Dallas Morning News)
Five years ago, the Dallas area was digging out from ice and snow storms that flattened the region as efficiently as a Hall of Fame pass rusher. And more trouble was ahead.
The historic football week featured unprecedented community participation, weather many visitors thought impossible for Texas, and a seating scandal that lingers today. This area’s first Super Bowl – played Feb. 6, 2011 – is still difficult to summarize years later.
Super Bowl XLV was a multi-year effort that raised millions for charity and created lasting programs. It also generated plenty of embarrassments when it left some fans without seats, treacherous snow fell from the stadium injuring workers and miserable weather shut down outdoor activities for much of the week. And it’ll be at least a decade before there’s any chance of the NFL returning its biggest game to the Dallas Cowboys’ stadium.
“I hope that people don’t believe the reason it hasn’t come back here sooner is because of the ice and the snow and the seats,” said Bill Lively, who ran the local Super Bowl XLV host committee. “It’s just not time yet.”
The most recent batch of Super Bowl hosts has been dominated by new stadiums and old standards – New Orleans and Florida. Half the 20 Super Bowls leading up to the 2018 game in Minnesota were or will be in new stadiums.
Still, memories of those North Texas troubles – some preventable and some not – linger from 2011.
