Hundreds of paper planes rained down inside the Melbourne Cricket Ground during the NFL’s historic Rams-49ers game, initially leaving one visiting American supporter wondering whether objects were being thrown at her.
The unexpected spectacle began late in Friday’s game as spectators launched folded cardboard from the upper levels of the MCG. Some planes travelled across the vast oval and reached the playing surface, drawing loud cheers from the crowd.
“Never seen so many paper planes before,” Complex Australia wrote while sharing footage of the scene. Its caption joked that Melbourne “had some engineers in the crowd” after several planes successfully landed on the field.
American fan admits she was ‘ready to fight’
Michelle, a San Francisco 49ers supporter visiting from California, told Fox Sports Australia that she did not immediately understand what was happening.
“I was ready to fight,” she said, recalling her initial reaction when the paper began flying around the stands.
The American fan said she initially looked around and wondered: “Who the f*** is throwing stuff?” As more planes appeared, however, she realised it was a stadium-wide bit of fun rather than a confrontation.
“Oh, I think it’s fun,” she recalled thinking once she understood what the Australian spectators were doing.
Amy, another visiting fan who travelled from Denver, said the planes added to an atmosphere unlike anything she had previously experienced at an NFL game.
“The airplanes started coming down. It was just electric,” she said.
The crowd’s reaction became part of the entertainment. Each successful flight towards the turf was greeted with cheers, while planes that fell short landed across the wide areas of grass surrounding the rectangular NFL field.
Where did all the paper planes come from?
The planes were reportedly created from cardboard cards distributed for a coordinated display before kickoff. Spectators originally used the cards to form giant Australian and American flags across sections of the stadium.
By the final quarter, many of those display cards had been folded and repurposed. According to The Australian, officials had to clear paper from both end zones as the number of planes reaching the field increased.
The unusual shape of the venue made every successful landing more impressive. The MCG was designed for cricket and Australian rules football, leaving a large distance between many seats and the NFL playing surface.
That configuration had already generated debate over why the NFL field looked so small inside the MCG. During the game, the same empty space turned the paper-plane launches into an unofficial distance competition.
The incident unfolded as San Francisco pulled away from Los Angeles to secure a 27-7 victory. With the result becoming increasingly clear, the planes provided light-hearted entertainment for sections of the 100,021-strong crowd.
The match was the first NFL regular-season game staged in Australia. Along with the military flyover, Jonas Brothers halftime performance and packed stands, the paper-plane shower became one of the day’s most widely shared scenes.
For some visiting Americans, it also captured what made the Melbourne experience different. Michelle went from preparing for a confrontation to enjoying the spectacle, while Amy described the combination of the crowd, a three-lap Mexican wave and planes descending through the stadium as “electric.”
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