Some Events To Look Forward To In 2016

As the calendar winds down on 2015, there are a few major events it keep an eye on for 2016.  As the media would say, even-numbered years are better than odd-numbered ones, partly due to all of the advertising dollars spent for the Olympics and political campaigns along with the soccer World and Euro Cups.

Here are some of the major events which will be very hard to miss


SUPER BOWL 50

The Super Bowl is the a huge sporting event and is often the most-watched television program of the year.  Super Bowl XLIX drew more than 114 million viewers who tuned in to watch Tom Brady lead the New England Patriots to victory.  Super Bowl 50 is expected to top 120 million viewers and television commercials are costing $5 million for 30 seconds!

This year's game will feature the Denver Broncos versus the Carolina Panthers.  Will Peyton Manning finally win his second Super Bowl ring or will Cam Newton be victorious?

Super Bowl 50 is being played in San Francisco and will most likely be the most successful one in history.  Silicon Valley is obviously in the area and companies such as Apple and Google raised money for the city's bid committee for the game.  Look for Super Bowl 50 to be the most tech-friendly version of all time, especially with social media. "This will be the most technologically advanced Super Bowl ever," says Keith Bruce, CEO of the Super Bowl Host Committee (this committee includes Google, Apple, Intel, Yahoo and Verizon).

The NFL chose to call it Super Bowl 50 as opposed to Super Bowl L.  This was to emphasize the 50th anniversary and, possibly, to counteract any confusion for people wondering the 'L' means!

IOWA CAUCUS - U.S. PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARIES

Thanks to Donald Trump, the Presidential Primaries have dominated the news for much of 2015 and will continue to do so as 2016 rolls around.  The results of the Iowa caucus in Februray , as well as other ones in the same month such as New Hampshire, will undoubtedly attract worldwide attention.

Had Donald Trump not been involved, the Republican race would have been much more subdued.  The question will be how much support he can maintain until February.  As the date approaches, it will be very hard to avoid the hoopla.


QUEEN ELIZABETH TURNS 90

Any milestone for Queen |Elizabeth, such as the 60th anniversary of her monarchy, always attracts international headlines along with the corresponding pomp and circumstance.  Her 90th birthday on April 21 will have huge celebrations in her honour as well as wall-to-wall coverage.

There will also be speculation as to whether she will step down on her birthday and allow her son Charles to become King.  This would be a drastic change as people under 60 haven't known any other British Monarch besides her.  It would also be different having King Charles on the pound note!


EURO 2016

The 2016 UEFA European Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 or simply Euro 2016, take place in France this year starting in June.  There will be 24 teams this year, up from the previous 16 team format.

Taking place in France, security will be very tight and the eyes of the world will be watching  the matches and hoping that everything runs without any incident.  The event won't be quite as large as the World Cup but Europeans are very passionate about their sport and a championship for France would probably be the ultimate feel-good story of the year.



SUMMER OLYMPICS - RIO DE JANEIRO

Rio de Janeiro is well known for its annual Carnival celebrations and the 2016 Summer Olympics will certainly have the same joyous spirit.  Brazil has a population of over 200 million people and many people will think that they are all attending the Games. 

It's going to be a interesting Games with veteran athletes such as Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps coming back yet again for gold medal glory.  People will also keep an eye out for any problems as there have been a few media reports about preparation issues leading up to the event, such as heavily polluted water where some sports are to take place.  However, like other Olympics, it will be a full-blown spectacle on TV and there will be a lot of amazing highlights, especially with the Opening Ceremonies.  Mais rápido, mais alto, mais forte!


U.S. PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

This is touted to be one of the most important elections in recent history as an electoral divide seems to have been created in the United States between the right and left leaning elements with very little common ground in the middle.  Hillary Clinton is expected to win the Democratic nomination but the Republican race is very much up in the air.

The 'x' factor is Donald Trump.  If he wins the Republican nomination, it could be a very divisive election.  If he doesn't gain the nomination, it's possible that he may run as a third-party candidate, which is seen as favouring the Democrats.  Whichever the case, there will be a lot of mud-slinging and the winner will have many fences to mend.

The G-20 Summit will take place in September 2016 and will be held in China for the first time.  This will be Barack Obama's last such event after 8 years of being President.  Who will be his successor the next time the world leaders get together?  The world will be watching and anticipating.

There will obviously be many other major events and anniversaries taking place in 2016 but the ones mentioned above will be dominating headlines for much of the year.  Be sure to keep informed!

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