The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are the 2020 NFC Champions, and will play Super Bowl 55 in Raymond James Stadium in two weeks. The Bucs will face the Kansas City Chiefs, who beat the Buffalo Bills to win the AFC Championship. While Kansas City will travel like normal, it will be a short trip for the Bucs as they are placing in the city they call home of Tampa, Florida.
But are they the first team to ever play the Super Bowl at home? Yes. And no. Kind of?? While the Bucs will be the first team to have the biggest game of the year in their home stadium, they won’t be the first to play it in their hometown.
The San Francisco 49ers played Super Bowl XIX at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto, California — just down I-5 from their home at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Joe Montana led the Niners to a 38-16 win over the Miami Dolphins in what ended up being Dan Marino’s only Super Bowl appearance on January 20th, 1985.
Also the Los Angeles Rams played Super Bowl XIV at the Rose Bowl in 1980, falling to the Pittsburgh Steelers 31–19 13 miles from what was their usual home of the LA Memorial Coliseum.
The Bucs will use the same locker room they do during the regular season, and have their team practice facility right across the street from the stadium as well. And that will be a first in the 55 Super Bowls in NFL history.