You can call it the Big Game, The Big One, The Game, the Super Game, the Championship. Just don’t call it the Super Bowl (damn, I did it anyway) — or you could have the NFL breathing down your neck in much the same way it’s going after anyone capitalizing on “Who Dat?” Read all about that controversy here. Or view WWL's rewind to the birth of the Who Dat here.
Actually, I'm not trying to stir up trouble with the all-powerful NFL. You see the news media gets a pass.
The Louisiana Press Association sent out a notice this morning to its membership regarding use of Super Bowl and other trademarked phrases: “Just a word about using the words ‘Super Bowl’ in ads. Don’t. While we are all tempted to use the words ‘Super Bowl’ for advertisement and contests of all sorts, just a friendly reminder that the NFL has the trademark on that phrase. It’s OK to use the name and the logos for news purposes, but the league doesn’t want it to be used beyond that unless they’ve licensed it."
We've heeded the advice and are reworking our post-Super Bowl ad. It now reads, "Congratulations on winning The Big One."