In the lead-up to Super Bowl LIX, Fox introduced a new NFL scorebug, surprising fans when they first saw it during the championship game in New Orleans. The minimalistic graphic is displayed without a background or logos, only showcasing the colors and acronyms of each team, alongside their timeouts, the current time, and score. While play is ongoing, the bug also indicates the play clock, down, and distance.
The new Fox NFL scorebug officially in action for Super Bowl LIX.
Thoughts? 🏈📺 #NFL pic.twitter.com/gJn8ooRHQJ
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 9, 2025
Fox occasionally displays statistics and player names adjacent to the main scorebug graphics for additional information. While scorebugs often spark strong opinions among dedicated sports fans, Fox’s latest design faced immediate and widespread criticism. NBC’s Nicole Auerbach was quick to express her discontent on X, labeling the scorebug as “awful.”
omg the scorebug is awful
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) February 9, 2025
Barstool’s Dan “Big Cat” Katz offered a more colorful critique, exclaiming his shock at the design.
WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS SCOREBUG
— Big Cat (@BarstoolBigCat) February 9, 2025
One of the top comments on the NFL sub-Reddit simply stated, “it sucks.” Sports media enthusiast CJ Fogler contrasted the scorebug’s aesthetics with visuals typical of NFL Films from the pre-scorebug era, highlighting an instance where the down and distance graphics overlapped with a stats graphic.
lmaoooooooooooo
— CJ Fogler (@cjzero.bsky.social) February 9, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Many are left wondering why Fox chose to unveil such a striking scorebug during the Super Bowl. Regardless of opinion, this remains the most significant football broadcast they will produce for quite some time, providing an opportunity to gauge viewer feedback with over 100 million people tuning in. It may take fans some time to adjust to the new graphics, or Fox might opt to retire this scorebug by September without a trace.
