By Sean Duthart

FOR Scottish fans, the Super Bowl has become less of a curiosity and more of a winter ritual as they give up a good night’s sleep to watch the action.

So this Sunday, the order of the night will be takeaway menus, alarms set for work the next morning, and another chance to see why American football keeps pulling people in across the pond.

And for one Scottish fan of the American game, the fact that one of the teams is the one that got him hooked on the sport in the first place makes it even more exciting.

Ryan Rooney a Patriot’s fan told uwsnews: “I’m buzzing to get back to the Superbowl as a Pats’ fan, Madden playing the game got me into the NFL.

”Being at 11.30 pm U.K time is a reasonable time, it’s normally at 3am and that only suits the U.S audience and not the global one.”

This weekend’s Super Bowl LX offers a match with history and edge, as the Seattle Seahawks face the New England Patriots in California and is a rare rematch of Super Bowl XLIX, remembered for one of the most infamous moments in NFL history: the 2015 game ended with a goal-line interception and heartbreak for Seattle. A decade on, the names have changed, but the memory still lingers, especially for fans who stayed up through the night to witness it live.

Seattle arrives as a well-balanced, modern NFL team and they have leaned heavily on defence throughout the season, controlling games rather than chasing them, and that approach has travelled well in the playoffs. Their offence may not be flashy, but it is efficient, and they rarely beat themselves, a quality that often matters most on this stage.

New England’s presence feels different. For years, the Patriots were the League’s standard-bearers, then came the slump so this season it has been about restoring belief and they have scraped, adapted, and found ways to win tight games, something British sports fans usually appreciate. There is also a familiar sense of resilience about them again, even if this version lacks the superstar sheen of past eras.

Seattle may start as slight favourites, but Super Bowls rarely follow scripts and they are often slower, tighter, and decided by moments rather than momentum.

Players to watch? Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who plays for the Seahawks, has led the NFL in receiving yards this season with 1,793 and his ability to beat tight coverage and make contested catches could be crucial against New England’s defence that strives on the physical side of things. Smith currently has 10 touchdowns with his last coming against the 49rs in the previous match. Possible M.V.P candidate could await Jaxon if the result goes well.

For New England the player is Quarterback Drake Maye. In his second year in the NFL, he has thrown over 4,300 yards and completed a league best 72% passing accuracy in the regular season and with a strong throwing arm and his ability to move the chains with his ground game makes him a dual threat. However, Maye did suffer an injury in the playoffs which could come back to haunt him.

With all to play for and a game evenly-split, this feels like a Super Bowl worth staying awake for.