Superbowl LVI kicked off this weekend with a highly anticipated match between the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals. With a large television audience, reaching over 100 million viewers, the Rams were able to take home the trophy in their home stadium in Los Angeles. 

For the Rams, this win potentially meant much more than a season title. The organization originally began in Cleveland, Ohio in 1936, moving to Los Angeles in 1946. The team remained in Los Angeles for 48 years, before packing up and moving to St. Louis in 1994.

In 2016, the Rams returned to California. Even when they resided in Los Angeles, the city was mainly known for its basketball and baseball teams, not necessarily its football. Existing between two successful professional teams, even though from different sports, proved difficult for the Rams to gain the same kind of support as other NFL teams. What might have made it worse, potentially, was the fact that in the Rams 48 years in Los Angeles, they didn’t win a single Superbowl title. 

Six years after their move to St. Louis, the Rams won their first Super Bowl title, defeating the Tennessee Titans 23-16. Despite their relative success in St. Louis, the team did not feel their needs were being met. They wanted their facilities to be some of the best in the NFL, and St. Louis could not provide that, so they moved.

Despite moving in 2016, their new stadium did not open until September 2020. SoFi stadium was something the Rams had been looking for in St. Louis but ultimately got while in Los Angeles.

This season proved the team’s work ethic, finishing the regular season winning the NFC West division. They then went on to win the next four games, including the Superbowl, finishing their season with a record of 12-5 and bringing home the NFL Championship title. 

The Super Bowl’s occurrence in Los Angeles definitely put the spotlight on the Rams in California. Although they still have a lot of work to do in establishing their name in the city of angels, hosting the Super Bowl, filling the stadium, winning their second-ever Super Bowl title on their own turf and being the first team to win in Los Angeles will help bring football back to the entertainment capital of the country.