The New England Patriots may take down the New York Giants in this year’s Super Bowl, according to ESPN predictions, and New England fans are already placing their bets.
Boston Mayor Thomas Menino is betting on the Patriots this year as well. He and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg agreed to a ‘friendly wager’ for their cities’ respective teams, according to a press release.
The two mayors decided that after Super Bowl XLVI, one family from the winning city will win a free trip to the losing city, where “they will be treated to some of the finest amenities and attractions the city has to offer,” according to the release.
“I have a lot of faith in the Patriots. They carried us this far, and I hope they’ll carry the Vince Lombardi Trophy right back to Boston,” Menino said in the release. “But either on the field or off, the City of Boston wins by being able to showcase some of the best our great city has to offer.”
Some of those offerings include box seats to a show at the Citi Performing Arts Center and to either a Bruins or Celtics game, tours of several historical sites, dinners at Legal Sea Foods and Top of the Hub and a photo with Menino himself.
The cities will hold a raffle after the game Sunday to determine the winners of what the two mayors are calling the ‘Super Tour.’ The losing city will provide a round-trip flight for the winning, four-person family and host the group for two nights.
The bet was designed to highlight tourism in each city and in Boston, “all of the accommodations are being donated,” according to an email from Menino’s office to The Daily Free Press.
Many spots in Boston willing to host the New York family, should the Patriots lose, said Menino approached them with the prospect.
“Mayor Menino asked the general manager of the restaurant and he was thrilled,” said Top of the Hub spokeswoman Rosanne Mercer. “We are all Pats fans. It was our pleasure to be supportive.”
She said tourists would be nothing new for the restaurant, which, located at the top of the Prudential Center, overlooks the entire city.
“We appeal to both visitors and residents alike,” she said, adding that despite this, the restaurant “host[s] probably far more Boston residents.”
The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, which has agreed to provide a “behind-the-scenes tour” for the winning family, also serves “a good mix” of both tourists and locals, said ISGM Media Relations Manager Michael Busack.
Menino asked about the bet when the museum opened its new wing earlier this month, Busack said, adding, “it’s something we’d love to participate in.”
Should the Patriots win, a family from Boston could go on a VIP tour of The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s new American wing, attend the Phantom of the Opera’s 10,000th performance, watch a Knicks or Rangers game and have dinner at The Russian Tea Room.
Bloomberg said even if the Giants lose, New York would be happy to host a group of Patriots fans. But he said he remained confident in his city’s team.
“I know the Giants are going to win next Sunday and bring home the trophy they’ve been working toward ever since the last time they beat the Patriots,” Bloomberg said in the press release, referring to the last time the Giants and the Patriots faced off in a Super Bowl, in 2008.
Last time, the Giants beat the Patriots 17-14, despite predictions to the contrary.
That year, Menino and Bloomberg bet with pounds of food, including 100 cups of New England Clam Chowder from Legal Sea Foods, 12 dozen Boston cream pies and 42 pounds of rugelach, according to a 2008 press release.
Despite the Super Tour’s potential promotion of Boston’s tourism industry and the friendliness of the wager, Patriots fans are still rooting for their team.
Although Top of the Hub would welcome the New Yorkers, Mercer said she trusts in New England and that a Super Tour of Boston is “not gonna happen.”
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Correct the New York part. “Should the Giants win, a family from Boston could go….”
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