Steelers Parade to Go on After Ominous Rumors

A Super Bowl victory parade is the birthright of every Super Bowl winning team. Now it is official that no team has more experience in Super Bowl parades than the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers Nation has already had five victory parades, and expects a sixth after last night. The Steelers will apparently get their parade - despite concerns in the middle of last week that it wouldn't come. In fact, rumor had it that a Steelers parade would not happen even with a win.

However, after Super Bowl 43, a Steelers parade will likely be held on Tuesday or Wednesday. Details have not been released yet, as they hadn't been leading up to the Super Bowl. Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl - who no longer needs to change his name now that the Steelers aren't facing the Ravens until 2009 - had said he didn't want to jinx the Steelers by announcing a parade route.

But that has not been the real reason, according to many rumors that took hold last week. The real reason may have been that a parade couldn't be held at all, even with a win.

The last time the Steelers got a victory parade, Pittsburgh had to pay $45,000 for cleanup. The Steelers Nation was also difficult to control, as fans kept running up to the players. With over 250,000 people in attendance, the 2006 Steelers parade was hard to control.

Pittsburgh should be used to containing people at victory parades. The Steelers have had five since the 70's, while the Pirates had two in the 70's, and the Penguins had two in the 90's.

But since the 2006 Super Bowl brought on the first Pittsburgh victory parade since the 92 Penguins, Pittsburgh showed some rustiness in parade planning and containment.

In addition, even victory parades aren't safe in this economy. Pittsburgh spent a lot on a problematic victory parade in 2006, when the economy still appeared to be stable. With those pretenses gone, a victory parade in today's recession could be a financial burden and a "budget buster."

Now that the Steelers have actually won that sixth ring, a victory parade now appears to be on the way anyway. But the victory celebration in Pittsburgh last night had a few rowdy fans setting fires and breaking windows. With the uncertainty around this parade, city officials have to hope such behavior was a one-time thing, and not the shape of things to come.

If the victory parade is held, details will probably be released later in the day - most of all on whether the parade is held tomorrow or Wednesday.

Sources

WTAE Pittsburgh- "How Will Pittsburgh Celebrate Steelers?" www.thepittsburghchannel.com/news/18619182/detail.html

Toronto Star- "Parade or no parade, that is the question" www.thestar.com/Sports/article/580497

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review- "Fans' exuberance floods Pittsburgh, draws police" www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/mostread/s_609820.html