This year’s Super Bowl won’t stream in 4K or HDR

Editor’s take: Super Bowl LV won’t be available to stream in 4K or HDR this year due to production limitations imposed by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Combined with a handful of other changes, this year’s big show could look vastly different from what we’ve come to expect from the championship game.

CBS Sports Digital, the division of CBS Interactive that handles coverage on “digital screens,” confirmed the news to The Verge this week. NBC was originally supposed to air the big game this year but elected to let CBS handle it in exchange for the right to cover Super Bowl LVI in 2022.

Per The Verge, CBS has never offered an NFL game in 4K / HDR before. Previous 4K streams of the Super Bowl were actually shot in 1080P and HDR, and upscaled to 4K for broadcasting.

Super Bowl LV takes place Sunday, February 7, 2021, from Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. Due to the pandemic, this year’s extravaganza is likely going to be a much more subdued affair. In-person attendance is expected to be capped at around 20 percent capacity and many traditional Super Bowl week festivities will likely be limited or canceled entirely.

Canadian singer the Weeknd is scheduled to perform at halftime.

Things will be different when viewing at home, too. According to a recent report from Hyperbeast, both Coca-Cola and Pepsi have decided not to run any commercials for their sodas during the Super Bowl “due to this year’s social climate.”

Image credit Melinda Nagy, Arina P Habich