Guide to the Game

Teams: New England Patriots, champions of the AFC, against the Carolina Panthers, champions of the NFC. New England is 16-2, Carolina 14-5.

Site: Reliant Stadium, Houston, home of the Texans. Houston also played host to Super Bowl VIII, which was played in Rice Stadium on Jan. 13, 1974.

Seating capacity: 70,000.

Kickoff: 3:25 p.m. PST.

TV: CBS will televise the game on more than 200 stations nationwide, including Channel 2 in the Southland. It will also be shown in 229 countries in 21 languages. Ten countries will have announcing teams on site, including China for the first time. In the United States, the game is being televised in high definition. For DirecTV subscribers, the high-definition telecast is available on Channel 81.

Radio: The CBS-Westwood One network will carry the game on 500 stations in the U.S., including locally on KFWB (980), XPRS (1090) and KAVL (610).

Weather: High of 68 degrees with a 30% chance of showers, according to the Weather Channel. The NFL would like to keep Reliant Stadium’s roof open but has the option of closing it in the event of heavy rain. This will be the first Super Bowl played in a stadium with a retractable roof.

Story line: This is New England’s fourth Super Bowl appearance and Carolina’s first. The game features the efficient passing of the Patriots, led by quarterback Tom Brady, and the run-oriented offense of the Panthers, led by running back Stephen Davis. Each team is renowned for its hard-nosed play on defense. New England’s defense ranked seventh in the NFL and Carolina’s was eighth. New England’s 14-game winning streak is the longest since the Miami Dolphins won 17 consecutive in 1972.

Last year’s game: Tampa Bay defeated Oakland, 48-21.

Coaches: Bill Belichick of New England, John Fox of Carolina.

Pregame entertainment: Aerosmith, Toby Keith, Willie Nelson and Walter Suhr and Mango Punch. There also will be a flyover of three Black Hawk helicopters by the Texas Army National Guard at the conclusion of the national anthem to be sung by Beyonce Knowles.

Halftime entertainment: Janet Jackson, P. Diddy, Nelly and Kid Rock.

Commercials: The going rate for a 30-second spot during the game is $2.3 million.

Record TV ratings: The 1982 Super Bowl involving the San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals set the record with a 49.1 rating.

Paychecks: The winning team will get $68,000 a player; the losing team $36,500.

Championship trophy: Tiffany & Co. manufactures the Vince Lombardi trophy, given to the Super Bowl champion.

Super Bowl rings: The NFL pays for up to 150 rings for the winners at up to $5,000 a ring. The league also pays for 150 rings for the losing team at half the cost of the winners’ rings.

Officials: Ed Hochuli, a 14-year veteran, is the referee. He also worked Denver’s 31-24 victory over Green Bay in Super Bowl XXXII that followed the 1997 season. He was an alternate for last year’s Super Bowl.

The line: The Patriots are a seven-point favorite.

Vegas’ take: Last year, gamblers wagered $71 million in Nevada on everything from the winner of the coin toss to the final score. Untold millions also were illegally bet in office pools, among friends, at offshore Internet sites and with neighborhood bookies, making it the largest day of gambling in the country.

Last game involving the teams: The Patriots defeated the Panthers, 38-6, on Jan. 6, 2002, at Charlotte, N.C.

Houston connection: The Patriots and Panthers each played at Houston during the regular season, New England defeating the Texans, 23-20, on Nov. 23 and Carolina losing to the Texans, 14-10, on Nov. 2.

Pivotal players: Carolina defensive ends Julius Peppers and Mike Rucker will be matched against New England offensive tackles Matt Light and Tom Ashworth. Carolina must keep the game low scoring because its offense isn’t expected to match the firepower of New England. Peppers and Rucker combined for 19 sacks during the regular season. If Light and Ashworth give Patriot quarterback Tom Brady time to throw, it could be a difficult game for the Panthers.

Sudden death: The Super Bowl has never needed overtime to determine the outcome. Carolina has played five overtime games this season.

Attendance: The largest crowd in the game’s history was 103,985 for Super Bowl XIV at the Rose Bowl. Total attendance for all Super Bowl games is 2,912,493.

Future Super Bowls: Jacksonville, Fla., 2005; Detroit, 2006; Miami, 2007; Tempe, Ariz., 2008.