Anatomy of a Super vote

May 22, 2008
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If you’re wondering how the voting action went behind closed doors for the 2012 Super Bowl site Tuesday in Atlanta, this is what several team owners and executives told IBJ.

Indianapolis, followed by Phoenix, then Houston made separate 15-minute pitches. Only four members of the local community were allowed in the room, and only two were allowed to speak. No mayors or governors were permitted in the room.

After each team made its presentation before the 32 owners, its representatives were taken to a separate room, away from the owners and away from each other. They would stay there until notified of a decision by an ominous-looking league representative.

With all three cities in the running, the owners took a first vote. Since no city obtained 75 percent of the vote, a second vote was taken to allow owners to reconsider their decision and throw their weight behind another candidate city and the NFL team that lives there.

Since 75 percent of the vote was not obtained on the second ballot, the third place finisher on the second ballot was eliminated. Goodbye Houston.

With two teams remaining, a third vote was taken, with a 75 percent majority required to win. Since neither Indianapolis nor Phoenix had the three-fourths majority, it went to a fourth vote, where a simple majority would win.

But after the third vote, sources inside the room said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell almost called Indy the winner, but then was informed the city was short of the 75 percent.

On the fourth vote, Indianapolis beat Phoenix by grabbing at least the 17 votes required to win. The Arizona Republic reported Indianapolis beat Phoenix by a 17-15 vote. But sources inside the room said it was closer to a 19-13 or 20-12 vote.

“Indianapolis almost had the three-fourths majority, from what I take from it,” said one owner, who asked not to be identified. “That’s why Roger [Goodell] initially thought they won on the third ballot.”
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  • editing: The word is allowed, not aloud, when you are talking about permission.

    Use it's as a contraction for it is. The possessive of it is its
  • Interesting insider info.. but I think you mean allowed.. not aloud in the second paragraph.

    C
  • Sounds like either the Phoenix newspaper lied to their readers, or their source lied, or a team owner wanted them to feel better about their loss.

    A win is a win, but it was strange how we supposedly were one vote short of a super majority (24 votes) in the third round and then only won 17-15 in the fourth. A final vote of 19 or 20 makes a little more sense.
  • I can't remember where I heard it, whether it was on TV or radio, but I remember hearing yesterday that it was a 23-9 vote on the fourth ballot. That sounds even more reasonable to me. Maybe this was even the vote on the third ballot, Indy falling just one vote short of the 24 (75 percent) needed, and so Goodell might have thought we had won then.
  • Thanks to Riley (and CDH) for pointing out the errors of my ways. I must have been blinded by lack of sleep. All fixed now. Thanks again.

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