SINGAPORE - Super Bowl LII (52) takes place on Monday morning (Feb 5, Singapore time) and American Football fans in the US and around the world are reaching fever pitch as they wait to see if the upstart Philadelphia Eagles can win their first championship at the expense of the New England Patriots seeking their record-tying sixth championship - all with Tom Brady at quarterback.

But all the hype has barely registered in Singapore where, besides among the American expatriate community and a small group of diehard fans, the Super Bowl often passes unnoticed - unless something memorable happens in the half-time show.

While the game itself consists only of four quarters of 15 minutes - which, thanks to the frequent stoppages, can sometimes take up to three hours for a 60-minute game - it is the razzmatazz before, during and after that has made this one of the most eagerly-anticipated sporting events in the calendar. It is also a masterclass in sports marketing that sets the standard for events all over the world.

Let's start with the numbers: For the past eight years, the Super Bowl averages 110 million viewers in the US per year. In fact, in the history of American television, Super Bowls make up 19 of the top 20 most watched shows of all time (the lone exception being the last episode of M*A*S*H in 1983). It is almost a national holiday, where families and friends gather together to watch the telecast and eat and drink - in fact, in the calendar, Super Bowl Sunday has the second highest daily food consumption of the year in the US, behind only Thanksgiving.

This audience, in turn, attracts the world's biggest corporations to advertise and they pay a princely sum to do - over US$5 million (S$6.6 million) for a 30-second commercial this year. In 2017, advertisers contributed US$419 million in revenues. This phenomenon of Super Bowl advertisements has taken on a life of its own ever since Apple's iconic "1984" commercial, with agencies vying to be the most talked-about spot. This has led to the observation that the half-time break is the only time when people choose to watch commercials - and this year will be no exception with superstars like Matt Damon, Morgan Freeman, Keanu Reeves and Chris Pratt seeking to win the day. The highlight of last year was Adam Driver starring for Snickers in what was billed as the world's first live TV commercial, garnering huge media coverage before and after the airtime itself.

While the price seems high, the size of the audience and the fact that they are choosing to pay attention to your advertisement for once, means it can still be good value. Consider the next biggest annual TV event: For the Oscars, an advertising spot costs US$2 million, but the viewership is only 35-40 million and much less engaged during the breaks.

Just as in other avenues, social media has come to the fore for the Super Bowl too. On Monday, over 65 million people will be talking about the game on Facebook and this has led to the biggest commercials taking on a viral life of their own in the week before the match, with companies spending upwards of another US$5 million to buy up online advertising space to push their spots.

It is not only the game and the commercials that have made the Super Bowl a must-watch event. Since the New Kids On The Block headlined the half-time show in 1991 and Michael Jackson elevated the event in 1993, it has become one of the most eagerly-anticipated music events of the year too. This year sees Justin Timberlake headlining again, following in a long tradition of a show graced by Coldplay, Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Madonna, U2, Bruce Springsteen, Prince and The Rolling Stones. Timberlake himself showcased the huge media reach of the game in dramatic fashion in 2004 when he infamously exposed Janet Jackson's breast on live TV - another iconic, if controversial, moment that has fuelled the mythology of the event further.

The Super Bowl audience is not restricted to the US though - another 50 million viewers watch around the world and Britain, Germany, Brazil, Canada and China make up some of the biggest markets and this is key to the National Football League's (NFL's) future expansion plans. In recent years, the league has placed exhibition and regular-season games in many of these countries and the "International Series" is now committed to hosting regular-season games in London through 2027 - which is generally considered to be the first step towards placing a team overseas permanently, with Tottenham Hotspur's new stadium being custom-built to accommodate NFL matches alongside Premier League football.

So what can Singapore sport learn from the Super Bowl?

Firstly, we have to caveat all of this by remembering the scale limitations imposed by Singapore's size. But there are still valuable lessons in the way the event is marketed through viral marketing, cross-platform media with a huge dose of digital, and trying to make the spectators at home and at the game feel like they are part of the action.

This year's Skittles commercial is an excellent example: It is branding it the world's first commercial that only one person will view, and that person is a teenager from Canoga Park named Marcos Menendez. It says it has made a 60-second Super Bowl ad but it will not be aired to the masses during the game - viewers won't see the ad, but will be able to watch a Facebook livestream of Menendez watching the ad to see his reaction. This kind of creativity really grabs the attention and increases the overall branding of the event.

In recent years several of the major Singapore sporting events - particularly the WTA Finals, Formula One Grand Prix and HSBC World Rugby Sevens - have realised the importance of spectator experience and community engagement, and the returns in terms of attendance and commercial sponsorships. One Championship has been a leader in brand building, both online and in-person. Their social media and streaming presence is already impressive and initiatives like promoting their fighters' playlists to fans and tie-ups with other brands have helped elevate mixed martial arts.

For venues like the Sports Hub, the way that US venues host "tailgating" (where fans drink beer and barbecue food on the back of a vehicle outside a stadium), utilise digital and create a family carnival-like experience at their events is also something to continue to aspire to.

Interactive event apps, virtual and augmented reality simulators, loyalty rewards, fanzones, exclusive access packages and use of customer analytics to tailor to individuals are all changing the fan experience.

While the idea of hosting a Super Bowl in Singapore - or indeed anywhere outside the US in the near future - is simply inconceivable, there are other major American sports events that could be located here.

The NBA has been active in growing overseas and placing games in markets like China and the Philippines, and already has a tie-up with Sport Singapore on the Junior NBA programme. An NBA game - exhibition or regular season - in the Singapore Indoor Stadium could easily attract a crowd of 15,000-20,000 locals and international visitors.Beyond NBA, it is difficult to see any other major sporting events that are bigger than what Singapore can already boast in our calendar - only ATP tennis could provide the same combination of global exposure, local appeal and world-class experience.

As Singapore considers what new sporting properties to bring in after the WTA Finals moves to China, we can at least reflect on the strong and varied stable of events that Formula One, International Champions Cup (ICC) football, HSBC World Rugby Sevens and others provide. We must continue to seek to enhance these and other events as the industry evolves to become increasingly entertainment as much as sporting, digital as much as physical, and about the sideline activities more than the on-pitch action.

While hosting an event of the Super Bowl magnitude remains out of reach, there are still plenty of engaging sporting opportunities out there to attract and with the reputation that Singapore has built as a world-class sporting venue, the limitations of size can be overcome with innovative planning and creative marketing.

James Walton is Sports Business Group Leader, Deloitte Southeast Asia. The views expressed are his own.