Sportico By Michael McCann, Robert Raiola 2/4/2026
The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks will play this Sunday in Super Bowl LX at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., home of the San Francisco 49ers. But California serving as the location of the game—and, importantly, additional games for Patriots and Seahawks players later in 2026—will bring tax consequences.
California has the highest income tax of any state, with a top marginal rate of 13.3% on wage income and capital gains that exceed $1 million a year. The top rate for wage income climbs to 14.6% when including the State Disability Insurance rate, which has no wage cap. The state income tax is in addition to other taxes, including the federal income tax, which is 37% for single taxpayers with incomes greater than $640,600.
From teams’ star quarterbacks—Drake Maye for the Patriots and Sam Darnold for the Seahawks—to relatively low-paid benchwarmers, all players in the Super Bowl will individually earn the same amount. Winning players will be paid $178,000 while losers will receive $103,000. This is a function of Article 37 of the collective bargaining agreement between the NFL and NFLPA. It governs postseason play and takes an egalitarian approach by treating players on each team the same.
So, at stake in winning the Super Bowl is pride, fame, bragging rights, legacy and an additional $75,000.
That’s pretax, of course. It’s also in addition to taxes on players’ NFL earnings that are considered taxable under California law.
More:
https://www.sportico.com/law/analysis/2026/patriots-seahawks-super-bowl-2026-california-taxes-1234883101/
