Super Bowl fans set for $13b splurge

Chicken wings and big-screen TVs may help drive Super Bowl spending past US$10 billion ($13 billion) this year for the first time as more Americans throw parties and crowd sports bars to root for the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Restaurant chain Buffalo Wild Wings predicts it will sell about six million wings for today's National Football League title game, up 9 per cent from last year, chief executive Sally Smith said.

The most popular: honey barbecue and spicy garlic.

"Takeout is huge for us on Super Bowl Sunday, but we're also seeing more dine-in guests," said Smith, who expects the chain's big screen TVs to draw customers. "We're seeing a bit of an improvement throughout the industry." People have "room in their budget for wings and a beer."

Americans will spend an average of US$59.33 on game-related merchandise, apparel and snacks this year, an increase of 13 per cent from last year, the National Retail Federation said, citing consumers surveyed by BIGresearch. That pushes total spending to an estimated $10.1 billion, the most in the eight years that New York-based NRF has conducted the survey.

About 34.9 million Americans are planning to throw a party this year, up from 31.6 million last year, NRF said. Some 61.2 million plan to go to a party, an increase from 58.8 million in 2010.

US consumer spending has been accelerating. Household purchases, accounting for 70 per cent of the economy, climbed 4.4 per cent in the fourth quarter, the most since the first three months of 2006, the Commerce Department said last week.

The Packers have won a record 12 NFL championships, including three Super Bowl titles, while the Steelers' six Super Bowl victories are more than any other franchise. The Packers are 2-point favourites to win.

Super Bowl wagers in Las Vegas may top $90 million for the first time in three years, said Jay Rood, sports book director at the MGM Mirage, and Jimmy Vaccaro, director of sports operations at Lucky's Race and Sports Book.

Last year's Super Bowl on CBS was the most-watched TV programme in US history, with 106.5 million viewers, Nielsen said.

Demand for TVs is projected to rise, with 4.5 million consumers intending to buy a new TV ahead of the game, NRF said.

- BLOOMBERG