Super Bowl weather history: Every time rain, wind, cold or snow complicated the big game

Super Bowl weather history: Every time rain, wind, cold or snow complicated the big game image

Football is notable for being played no matter the weather conditions, but that doesn't mean low temperatures, high precipitation or wind can't make games unpleasant for all involved.

That's why, historically, the NFL has had a significant bias toward warm-weather cities when selecting where to put the biggest game of the year.

Still, of course, Mother Nature hasn't always cooperated. And recently, as dome stadiums have become more common, the warm-weather rule has been loosened.

Here's a rundown of notable Super Bowl weather events, including the number of times it's rained during a Super Bowl, windiest and coldest Super Bowls, snow in the Super Bowl and more.

MORE: Which NFL city has hosted the most Super Bowls?

How many times has it rained during a Super Bowl?

While many Super Bowls have had at least a trace amount of rain detected near the stadium, the only Super Bowl truly played in the rain was Super Bowl 41 in 2007. That game was played in Miami, and the Colts beat the Bears. The showers also helped set the mood for Prince's halftime show, which is widely considered to be one of the best of all time.

Windiest Super Bowl

Wind, of course, can be a bit tough to quantify, but some games stand out above the others.

Super Bowl 14, at the Rose Bowl in 1980, had gusts of up to 30 mph. Super Bowls 18 (Tampa) and 23 (Miami) both had gusts of around 25 mph. There was a gust of 29 mph just before kickoff of 2016's Super Bowl 50 in San Francisco, but less wind during the actual game.

The rainiest Super Bowl was also a rather windy one. The 2007 Miami rainstorm came with gusts of 20 mph.

Coldest Super Bowl played outdoors

Super Bowl 6 was the coldest played outdoors. The game was held at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans on Jan. 16, 2972, when the kickoff temperature was 39 degrees and the high temperature was 43 degrees.

Since 2000, the coldest outdoor Super Bowl was Super Bowl 48 in 2014 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The kickoff temperature was 49 degrees, and the high was 55 degrees.

Has it ever snowed during a Super Bowl?

It has never snowed during a Super Bowl being played outdoors.

The most snowfall for any Super Bowl Sunday was in 2006, when the game was played inside Ford Field in Detroit. There was 1.1 inches of snowfall that day.

There was lots of snow in Arlington, Texas, the week before Super Bowl 45 in 2011, and an ice storm hit Atlanta on the day of Super Bowl 34 in 2000. Another near miss was Super Bowl 48. The Monday following the Super Bowl, about 8 inches of snow fell in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Has a Super Bowl ever been postponed?

No, a Super Bowl has never been postponed or delayed due to weather.

The only Super Bowl delay in history was the 34-minute stoppage caused by the Superdome power outage during Super Bowl 52 in 2013.

Are Super Bowls always in domes?

Most Super Bowls are held outdoors. Of the 54 Super Bowls, 20 have been played in domes.

Since 2000, however, the majority of Super Bowls have been played indoors. Twelve of the past 20 Super Bowls have played indoors, including seven of the past 10.

Twenty of the first 27 Super Bowls were played outdoors. The first domed Super Bowl was Super Bowl 12 in the Superdome in 1978.

Super Bowl weather history

GameDateCity, stadium (bold if indoors)Kickoff temperatureNotes
1Jan. 15, 1967Los Angeles, L.A. Coliseum72° 
2Jan. 14, 1968Miami, Orange Bowl68° 
3Jan. 12, 1969Miami, Orange Bowl73°Light rain during game
4Jan. 17, 1970New Orleans, Tulane Stadium61°0.57 inches of gameday rain
5Jan. 17, 1971Miami, Orange Bowl70° 
6Jan. 16, 1972New Orleans, Tulane Stadium39° 
7Jan. 14, 1973Los Angeles, L.A. Coliseum84° 
8Jan. 13, 1974Houston, Rice Stadium50° 
9Jan. 12, 1975New Orleans, Tulane Stadium46° 
10Jan. 18, 1976Miami, Orange Bowl57° 
11Jan. 9, 1977Pasadena, Calif., Rose Bowl58° 
12Jan. 15, 1978New Orleans, Superdome70° 
13Jan. 21, 1979Miami, Orange Bowl71°Light rain
14Jan. 20, 1980Pasadena, Rose Bowl67° 
15Jan. 25, 1981New Orleans, Superdome72° 
16Jan. 24, 1982Pontiac, Mich., Silverdome72° 
17Jan. 30, 1983Pasadena, Rose Bowl61° 
18Jan. 22, 1984Tampa, Tampa Stadium68°Wind gusts up to 25 mph
19Jan. 20, 1985Stanford, Calif., Stanford Stadium53° 
20Jan. 26, 1986New Orleans, Superdome70° 
21Jan. 25, 1987Pasadena, Rose Bowl76° 
22Jan. 31, 1988San Diego, Jack Murphy Stadium61° 
23Jan. 22, 1989Miami, Joe Robbie Stadium76°Wind gusts up to 25 mph
24Jan. 28, 1990New Orleans, Superdome72°, 67° 
25Jan. 27, 1991Tampa, Tampa Stadium71° 
26Jan. 26, 1992Minneapolis, Metrodome73°, 26° 
27Jan. 31, 1993Pasadena, Rose Bowl61° 
28Jan. 30, 1994Atlanta, Georgia Dome72°, 44° 
29Jan. 29, 1995Miami, Joe Robbie Stadium76° 
30Jan. 28, 1996Tempe, Ariz., Sun Devil Stadium68° 
31Jan. 26, 1997New Orleans, Superdome67° 
32Jan. 25, 1998San Diego, Qualcomm Stadium67° 
33Jan. 31, 1999Miami, Pro Player Stadium73° 
34Jan. 30, 2000Atlanta, Georgia Dome72°, 34°Ice storm
35Jan. 28, 2001Tampa, Raymond James Stadium65° 
36Feb. 3, 2002New Orleans, Superdome72°, 56° 
37Jan. 26, 2003San Diego, Qualcomm Stadium81°Hottest Super Bowl
38Feb. 1, 2004Houston, Reliant Stadium59° 
39Feb. 6, 2005Jacksonville, Fla., Municipal Stadium59° 
40Feb. 5, 2006Detroit, Mich., Ford Field68°, 30°1.1 inches of gameday snowfall
41Feb. 4, 2007Miami Gardens, Dolphin Stadium67°Rainiest Super Bowl; 0.92 inches on gameday
42Feb. 3, 2008Glendale, Ariz., Univ. of Phoenix Stadium70°, 61° 
43Feb. 1, 2009Tampa, Raymond James Stadium66° 
44Feb. 7, 2010Miami Gardens, Sun Life Stadium60° 
45Feb. 6, 2011Arlington, Texas, Cowboys Stadium52°Snowstorm during week before game
46Feb. 5, 2012Indianapolis, Lucas Oil Stadium44° 
47Feb. 3, 2013New Orleans, Mercedes-Benz Superdome71° 
48Feb. 2, 2014East Rutherford, N.J., MetLife Stadium49° 
49Feb. 1, 2015Glendale, Univ. of Phoenix Stadium66° 
50Feb. 7, 2016Santa Clara, Calif., Levi's Stadium76°29 mph gust before kickoff
51Feb. 5, 2017Houston, NRG Stadium76° 
52Feb. 4, 2018Minneapolis, U.S. Bank Stadium70°,Coldest Super Bowl day
53Feb. 3, 2019Atlanta, Mercedes-Benz Stadium64°