Something poetic can be said about the similarities between the National Football league and heavy metal music. Both activities rely on substantial amounts of aggression which gets channelled into a form of art, complete with passion and the roar of a crowd. You might not get yourself caught up in a mosh pit down the MetLife Stadium, but there are certainly similarities between the two.
It’s not surprising then for bands to support NFL teams and be associated with the NFL in commercial ways. One just has to look at the unrivalled viewership, the popularity of comprehensive NFL betting markets, ongoing sponsorship, historic half-time Super Bowl performances and much more. Let’s take a look at some of the NFL fans from the world of metal.
1. The Packers and Jungle Rot
Jungle Rot, but more so the band’s lead guitarist Dave Matrise, is a big fan of their home state of Wisconsin. The band frequently reference the things they like about their home state, and often that comes back to their beloved Green Bay Packers. In an interview just over a decade ago, Matrise listed the things he loves about Wisconsin the most, and of course, The Packers spearheaded that list.
2. The Patriots and Ozzy Osbourne
Although the Prince of Darkness and Black Sabbath frontman has never openly declared himself a Patriots fan, there is one performance that suggests he might be. He wore a Patriots jersey during an opening performance in 2005 for the New England Patriots. At the time, the team were flying with Tom Brady at his best. There’s nothing more metal and rockstar than Ozzy stealing some limelight from the team with his performance.
3. The Giants and Ronnie James Dio
Black Sabbath’s Dio is known to be a massive Giants fan, hailing from New York and being a fan as a child. Although he hasn’t been donning a Giants jersey himself while performing, he has caught the headlines for his reaction to other people wearing opposing team jerseys. The most notable is when he gave one audience member the bird for throwing an Eagles Philadelphia jersey in front of him.
4. The Raiders and Kerry King
Metallica were massive fans of The Oakland Raiders, none more passionately so than Kerry King. You could usually find the metal star wearing the silver and purple Raiders’ jersey when performing on stage, even when out of state. Although the team now plays in Las Vegas, Kerry King always opted for the old-school jersey of a time gone by.
Metallica also frequently perform on the night of the Super Bowl or the night before in the same city. Despite this, they have never performed as the main event at the big game, which is usually offered to pop stars and rappers in modern times.
Reeder, the visionary behind Metal Addicts, has transformed his lifelong passion for metal into a thriving online community for metal aficionados. As a fervent devotee of black metal, Reeder is captivated by its dark, atmospheric, and often unorthodox soundscapes.