Spokesmen for the National Football League and law enforcement agencies say there is “no credible threat” centered around Sunday’s Super Bowl.
“At this time we know of no credible threat directed at Super Bowl 50,'' said Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson.
Jeffrey Miller, who is the NFL’s senior vice president of security said he’s happy with the joint efforts of local, state and federal law enforcement to keep the big game safe.
“It gives the NFL a great deal of confidence in the safety of our premiere event, our teams and our fans,'' Miller said at a news conference Wednesday. “I can speak for Commissioner [Roger] Goodell in saying that we are deeply appreciative of the leadership, resources and attention to detail put forth by our public safety partners.''
Officials say they have learned from recent terror attacks in Paris and San Bernardino.
“Every year is different. The world situation, the threat picture is different every February,'' said Johnson. “We are, with the NFL, with our federal partners, and state and local law enforcement, focused on layered security, seen and unseen. We learned from events of the past but we have to protect against events of the future. So, we try to anticipate things that can happen from multiple different directions. But we're always informed by recent events and what we see in the world situation.''
One fear officials do have is a so-called lone wolf attack. According to Fox News, an internal memo from the FBI and Homeland Security, calls lone wolf attackers a “particular concern.”
To prevent any would-be attack from the air officials have banned drones and airplanes from flying near Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
“They're prohibited even to possess one in the parking area, for a regular game, then secondly we have a temporary flight restriction in place at all NFL stadiums for all of our games,'' Miller said. “So, that's an aircraft.''
The U.S. Air Force will have fighter jets in the area to provide additional security from above.
Officials are also calling on the public to notify them should they see anything suspicious.
Brazilian security officials will be at Sunday's Super Bowl game in the United States as part of training ahead of the 2016 Rio Olympics, according to aroundtherings.com (ATR).
Visiting the Super Bowl in Santa Clara, California, near San Francisco, is part of Brazil's Major Sports Events Observer Program (SESGE), said ATR.
The Brazilian delegation, including the Rio 2016 national security coordination, was to be in the greater San Francisco Bay area observing security protocols several days before, and at, the game Feb. 7.
The Super Bowl is the biggest one-day sporting event in the U.S., and it is attracting even more interest this year as Super Bowl 50 celebrates the game's golden anniversary.
