It’s time! The biggest weekend of the NFL football season has arrived, and that means not just the game itself… but the annual extravaganza known as Shaq’s Fun House! This year, Phoenix and Glendale, Arizona (Glendale is home to the game stadium) will be hosting several huge events for game-weekend party-goers. The biggest is Shaq’s, of course… but there’s more.
Now, for the Fun House. The big annual party to celebrate the Big Game is at the Talking Stick Resort and Casino in Scottsdale, Arizona. The show there features all the usual Fun House experiences, and the music is headlined by Diplo, Snoop Dogg and of course a dance mix appearance by several popular DJs, including none other than Shaq’s alter ego, DJ Diesel.
As of this post, that party is TONIGHT… so we’re hoping you’re already in the Valley of the Sun, ready for the huge event. Still, there are other big events coming as well. Here’s just a couple of the parties you might want to check out in you’re heading to the game – or at least the Phoenix area this weekend.
Former NFL star (from the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers) Rob Gronkowski is putting on a part of his own. In the past, he’s partnered with Shaq for several events. This year, the guy who calls himself the “MVP of Fun” is hosting his own party tomorrow (Saturday), the day before the game.
The four-time Super Bowl winner is hosting a music festival called “Gronk Beach” in Phoenix on Saturday, a day ahead of the big game. This party is at the same venue, the Talking Stick Resort, and features 21 Savage, Lil Jon and Diplo (who’s also performing at Shaq’s Fun House).
Along with the music, Gronk’s Beach will have other events, including a celebrity volleyball pool competition. Gronk has this to say: “This event brings a whole other dynamic to going to a party. Anyone can go to a party in their basement like high school or college style. But as you get older, you like the theme party now. You like walking in, seeing the beach, seeing the volleyball going on, seeing the stage. It’s like seventh heaven.”
As for the Fun House itself, there’s plenty of crazy fun along with the music. Past craziness that’s coming back this year includes a human claw machine, giant Ferris wheel and an 80-foot slide.
And as they say on TV, “But wait! There’s more!” Also at this year’s big game weekend, popular Food Network TV host Guy Fieri is looking to create the Super Bowl’s largest culinary event ever.
It’s called Guy’s Flavortown Tailgate. This event is a free, family-friendly event that he expects to draw around 10,000 fans. Fieri is hand-picking about 15 restaurants and bar experiences. This event will go on before the actual game inside State Farm Stadium, where the Chiefs and Eagles face off.
Fieri said: “We got the greatest game in the world and it’s something everyone dreams of going to, but not everybody can get in the stadium. So I thought, ‘Why don’t we throw a tailgate?’ A lot of people go to the tailgate instead of going to the actual game. But there’s not tailgating normally at the Super Bowl, because of parking. But we’re right across the street from the stadium. From 11-4:30, we are throwing a free party so you can have that Super Bowl experience.”
No matter how you slice it, this year’s game is looking to be the biggest ever, party-wise. Be safe and have fun out in the desert!