The first look at the Super Bowl 50 program for Sunday. (Mike Petraglia/WEEI.com)
It is a collector’s tradition almost as rich as the game itself.
The Super Bowl 50 game program that will be sold Sunday in the stadium is out and the New England company that produces it is proud of its heritage in the game.
While Patriots fans might understandably take a pass on anything to do with Super Bowl 50, the 312-page program features a sharp high-gloss, gold-themed cover, with memorabilia from the previous 49 Super Bowls and a picture of the Vince Lombardi Trophy as the centerpiece as usual.
Since 2004, when H.O. Zimman, Inc. produced the Super Bowl XXXVIII program for the Patriots and Panthers in Houston, the Lynn, Mass. company has been the publisher of one of the most popular game program souvenirs in sports.
Zimman currently produces the Official Souvenir Magazines for the Super Bowl, Pro Bowl,
US Open Tennis Championships, and more than 350 other annual tennis events. They are also the official publisher for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum program, the Pro Football Hall of Fame Yearbook and the Masters Journal for Augusta National.
The Boston-area company that has been in business for over 70 years also positions itself outside of mainstream sports.
With more than 500 publications annually, Zimman have an array of publication projects, including the Democratic National Convention Program, the Presidential Inauguration Program, the Boston Flower Show, the Boston and Jacksonville Auto Shows and commemorative keepsakes for prestigious organizations such as the Kernwood Country Club and the Longwood Cricket Club.
Zimman makes all of their Super Bowl programs available for order online, including this year’s edition. The online price is $11.99 for the national copy and $14.99 for the in-stadium holographic version.