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The Detroit Lions, whose roots date back to 1930, are just one of four NFL teams to never appear in the Super Bowl. (Quiz: Can you guess the other three?) Before this season, the team had won only one game in the playoffs since Dwight D. Eisenhower became president. So it’s no wonder Lions fans were ecstatic this month when the Lions defeated the Los Angeles Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers to win the division for the first time in 30 years and break a playoff drought. The team’s playoff appearance brought great joy and encouragement to local businesses surrounding the team’s stadium, Ford Field.
“Playoff day was non-stop.”
Buddy’s Pizza, a restaurant in downtown Detroit, was packed Sunday.
“This is a huge deal for us and a lot of other bars and restaurants in the area,” said Andrew Stanek, manager of the restaurant near Ford Field. “Detroit Lions fans just stick to their team through hard times, through hard times, and through 60 years of struggle.”
A few blocks away, at Harry’s Detroit Bar & Grill, lines formed outside the restaurant and on the sidewalk.
Cesar Ramirez, assistant general manager at Harry’s, said the restaurant had record sales during the Lions’ first playoff win against the Rams.
“Our business has definitely increased significantly,” he said, noting that the restaurant’s revenue on the day of the team’s first playoff win was just over $60,000, up 4.5 million yen from a typical day compared to the same period last year. He added that the increase was nearly $10,000. .
“Everyone on the schedule wants to work because they know it’s money day,” Ramirez said.
The Lions’ victory over the Buccaneers on Sunday advanced them to their first NFC Championship Game since the 1991 season. This weekend in Santa Clara, Calif., against the 49ers, bars in Detroit will be packed with Lions fans hoping their team will advance to the Super Bowl for the first time, leaving only the Cleveland Browns in Houston. right. The teams not in the title game are the Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars.
“I’ve been waiting for this for a long time.”
Lions fans were all smiles as they waited to enter Ford Field. For those who were unable to secure a ticket, Eastern His Market (a rear entrance with shops and restaurants in the district of the same name) located near the stadium was available.
Ron Crachiola, known as Crackman, was among those attending the tailgate. Crachiola said he started going to games with his father 60 years ago and has seen far more losses than wins, but never lost faith. He said he wished his father, who died in April at age 95, had seen the Lions compete for a Super Bowl spot. On Sunday, Mr. Crachiola was wearing a necklace with a photo of his father on it.
“It means a lot to the city. It brings tears to my eyes,” said Crachiola, who turns 72 this week. “It still feels like a dream come true. I’m still on a cloud. I just sit there and think: This is really happening. We’re two games away from the Super Bowl.”
Businesses around Ford Field have benefited not only from the Lions’ playoff run, but also from years of investment in downtown Detroit, which has received particular attention since the city’s bankruptcy a little more than a decade ago.
Detroit is a vast 139-square-mile city, and some neighborhoods, long littered with vacant buildings and vacant lots, remained largely unchanged despite the Lions’ success.
Still, some in Michigan say the team’s record has created a new bond.
Tiffany and Don Gilling came to Ford Field with their children, Tripp, 9, and Kaiden, 12, as well as friend Justin Bidosh and his 8-year-old son Parker.
“I think passion and fun are so important to our city,” Gilling said. “It brings us closer together.”
“My boys, that’s the best thing. I got to see my kids get through this and just have fun,” Gilling added. “This is something they will always remember. This is the core memory of the family we are creating, and that is what brings me the most happiness.”
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