Super Bowl 2026 cheat sheet: Players, performers, storylines to watch

Super Bowl Sunday is nearly here. And even if you're not a sports fan, it remains the biggest unofficial American holiday. Or maybe you are a sports fan but don't understand why there's so much talk about Bad Bunny's halftime show.

No matter your interests, we here at Mashable have you covered. We've collected all the major storylines, important people, and info you need to know for Super Bowl LX on Sunday, Feb. 8.

Super Bowl LX: The facts

The New England Patriots will face off against the Seattle Seahawks for Super Bowl LX (that's 60 in Roman numerals, by the way). Here are the quick, bullet-point facts you need to know about the game.

• The game kicks off roughly at 6:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, Feb. 8. It's being played outside of San Francisco and will air on NBC. You can also stream it on Peacock.

• The Seahawks are considered slight favorites to win, having reached the big game largely on the strength of their dominant defense. The Patriots, meanwhile, skyrocketed to success (yet again) after a brief downturn following the end of the Tom Brady era.

• Both quarterbacks in the game have interesting backstories, which brings us to our next section...

The football stars you need to know

The Super Bowl can turn somewhat anonymous NFL players into household names. Here are the stars you should probably know before the game kicks off.

• Drake Maye: The career paths for the Super Bowl LX quarterbacks could not be more different. Maye, who quarterbacks the Patriots, has rocketed upward since being drafted two seasons ago. His first year was promising, but this season — under a new coaching staff — he played at a potentially MVP-winning level. He's one of the most promising young players in the NFL, performing at an elite level well ahead of schedule.

• Sam Darnold: It's been more of a roller coaster ride for Darnold. He was drafted third overall in 2018 by the New York Jets but struggled to find success with the franchise synonymous with failure. He flamed out in New York and with his second-chance franchise, the Carolina Panthers. He spent a year as a backup before joining the Minnesota Vikings, reviving his career with a 14-win season, only to be discarded again. Now here he is in Super Bowl LX with his new team, the Seattle Seahawks.

• Stefon Diggs: Diggs, a New England wide receiver, was once a superstar, even if he's a bit less explosive now at 32 years old. But you also might know him as Cardi B's boyfriend.

• Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Smith-Njigba is Seattle's star receiver, who had a stunning breakout season. Expect to see him catching the ball. A lot.

• Mike Vrabel: The Patriots coach is sort of a magician. Last year, a version of this roster won a pathetic four games. This season, they won 14 games. You can give a lot of that credit to Vrabel, who took over in 2025.

• Mike MacDonald: The Seattle coach. He's a defensive guru who has totally transformed the franchise in just two years at the helm.

There are, obviously, lots of other stars in the big game, but those are the absolute top-line folks you need to know.

Other names you need to know

The Super Bowl is much more than just the game itself. Here are the other folks who'll almost certainly play a role in the broadcast.

• Bad Bunny: The wildly talented Puerto Rican megastar is playing the halftime show.

• Tom Brady: The legendary Patriots QB who led the team to six Super Bowl victories.

• Bill Belichick: The legendary coach of the New England dynasty teams. He's been in the news for less fun reasons lately, namely his thus-far disastrous stint coaching North Carolina, and for being snubbed out of the Hall of Fame.

• Cardi B: The rap superstar is dating Diggs and will almost certainly be at the game.

• Ann Michael Maye: Fans in the Boston area are obsessed with Drake Maye and, in turn, have grown obsessed with his wife, Ann. And, to be fair, their relationship seems quite wholesome. Folks, especially, loved watching Ann's baking exploits on social media, which she dubbed "Bakemas" in the lead-up to Christmas. It was so popular, it has even branched out into a local, baking-focused TV show.

• Malcolm Butler: The Patriots defeated the Seahawks in the 2015 Super Bowl. The game was largely decided by a last-minute, miracle interception by New England defender Malcolm Butler. Get ready to see that play and to hear his name.

A highly anticipated halftime show (and the Trump of it all)

People are super excited to see Bad Bunny perform during halftime, especially fresh off Bad Bunny's Grammy win for Album of the Year. The Puerto Rican star has, however, regularly voiced his opposition to President Donald Trump and directly criticized ICE at the Grammys.

"Before I say thanks to God, I'm gonna say ICE out. We're not savage, we're not animals, we're not aliens, we are humans, and we are Americans," he said onstage.

A certain section of America — roughly the same folks upset at a Spanish-language artist performing at the Super Bowl — don't appreciate that criticism. A major question for folks is whether Bad Bunny will make a political statement during the halftime show, as he performs for America's largest TV audience.

The narratives and drama

Some football fans might not admit it, but the sport is all about the drama. We love a good story. Here are the narratives to know.

• Patriots fatigue: Football fans hated the Patriots for years as they dominated the NFL for much of the past two decades. Finally, with Brady gone, they had fallen back to Earth. Or so we thought. The franchise suffered just five middling years before returning to the Super Bowl. For many NFL fans, that is simply unfair. The Detroit Lions, for instance, are one of the oldest franchises in the league — around since 1930 — and have never appeared in a Super Bowl.

• Who's for real? These two teams are both great. But NFL fans love to doubt. Folks have questioned the ease of New England's schedule — it was one of the easiest in NFL history — and openly wondered if the team is that good. Other NFL fans, meanwhile, question if Darnold might spontaneously play like the guy who flamed out at previous stops.

• A new champion: The last half-decade has been dominated by the Kansas City Chiefs, who've won three Super Bowls since 2020. They typically faced off against the San Francisco 49ers or the Philadelphia Eagles in the big game. But 2026's matchup is completely different and is perhaps a marker of a new era.

There are, of course, a million things that could happen in the Super Bowl. Heck, the last time these teams played in the championship, a miracle interception happened. But now, at the very least, you've got a grasp on all the basics before game day.