Why most ads and promos can't say 'Super Bowl'

NEW YORK (FOX5NY.COM) - The Super Bowl is a cash cow for the NFL so it is no surprise that when it comes to using the event name in advertising or promotions, like watch-parties, the league throws down a heavy hammer.

Advertisers shell out millions of dollars to be official partners of the league. So the NFL can't just let others do so for free. That is why advertisers, restaurants, and bars use other similar phrases—such as Big Game and Big Day—to promote any connection to arguably the biggest Sunday of the year.

While the NFL can't realistically be able to send cease-and-desist letters to everyone who promotes their parties using the term Super Bowl, most businesses still choose to tread on the side of caution.

Shaun Clancy, the owner of Foley's New York, doesn't plan to explicitly use "Super Bowl" to get people into his bar on Sunday. He said people know what they're coming in for.

He said a few years back, the bar used the term "Big Game" and some European soccer fans came in thinking a big soccer match would be playing.

Nowadays, Foley's is selling up the matchup with its menu and just looks at the weekend as the culmination of the Football Sunday events they've hosted all year long.