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Wednesday served as a universal release valve citywide.
The day marked plenty of things; in simple terms, it was a celebration of the Los Angeles Rams, the winners of Super Bowl LVI. But that victory was a [positively] loaded one; Sean McVay’s team climbed back up to the biggest stage in football after being embarrassed three years ago by the designated bad guys of pro sports, the New England Patriots (sorry folks, if you win that much, you’re the bad guys).
🏈"Whose city? Whose house?" #RamsHouse! @ericgarcetti presents the keys to the city pic.twitter.com/hI74WhSEBn
— LAist (@LAist) February 16, 2022
For L.A. sports fandom in the abstract, it might have served as a general celebration of a truly terrific tear of pro sports prowess that never saw parades to release the revelry. In 2020, the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Dodgers won titles. In 2021, the L.A. Giltinis won the Major League Rugby championship (yes, L.A. has a professional rugby team and yes it won a title).
And for folks just hoping to get out and take in an event that seems a relic of pre-pandemic times, the parade also marked a major moment. Masks are no longer mandated; the requirement was lifted hours earlier for L.A. County outdoor mega events. But we’re still in a pandemic and wearing a mask in crowded spaces isn't a bad idea.
Wednesday was a lot of things for a lot of people. And LAist has a whole lot of coverage for the parade. Take in the sights and sounds of the big day for L.A. below.
Whats up L.A. 🙌 The LAist team is out at the LA Memorial Coliseum ready to celebrate with the @RamsNFL 💙💛 pic.twitter.com/qCyelmKyLg
— LAist (@LAist) February 16, 2022
LAist's Julia Barajas, Julia Paskin, and Alborz Kamalizad were on the ground talking to some of the parade attendees, like Tristan and Stefani Ervin from Foothill Ranch.
"So I've been a football fan my entire life, but she [Stefani] was never into football," said Tristan.
"Ever," said Stefani.
"Because she never understood it. So I took her to a Rams game," Tristan continued. "This was the first year and she loves the game now. We went to a second game and I was watching it and I looked down at her phone, and she was, like, looking at formations. So I knew she was into it."
"I think I got lucky that I became a football fan this year because obviously, my team won, so I'm pretty stoked," Stefani said.
Not only did Frank Vega and his son Dean make the drive from Fontana, but they skipped school, as well. Frank is a teacher at Cerritos College.
"I had to go do something early this morning, and while I was in Los Angeles, I figured I'm going to come by this thing," Frank Vega said.
The father and son duo were on their way back to their car on scooters after buying too much merch that they no longer wanted to lug around.
"The Rams winning means to me personally...[the] first time in my lifetime, I got to see my Rams win a Super Bowl. And to win it at home, to win it in our stadium, to win it in front of our people, to win it here," Frank said.
Another fan named Yungg L drove about an hour from the Inland Empire to attend the Rams Championship Parade and Rally. He said he's been a Rams fan since the day he came out of the womb.
"When we went to the Super Bowl three years ago, we didn't have a quarterback that can actually make the plays that we needed," L said. "So this year, when we traded for Matthew Stafford, It's not only gonna be a Super Bowl, but this is a birth of [a] dynasty."
Jonathan Cardenas and his friends drove from Ontario and rode the Metro to the event. Cardenas said the Super Bowl victory over the Bengals was a long time coming.
"They went all in on the poker table and then it came out on top," he said, referring to the Rams acquiring Stafford, Odell Beckham Jr. and Von Miller last year.
As the celebrations were coming to a close, "Whose house? Rams house" chants rang throughout the street. Bullhorns and fireworks went off, and the music was slowly fading out.
It was Andrew Whitworth's turn to address the crowd. He wore a shirt with a young Cooper Kupp on it. The Rams left tackle said five years ago, he was told he was a little too old to play football.
"I was told maybe my time was done, and I'll tell you this, for every single person standing out there that's ever doubted anything you've ever done," he said. "Bet on yourself because five years later, I'm holding this trophy up, and I'm 40-years-old."
By the time the Super Bowl MVP got to the stage, elected officials, Rams brass and multiple players had spoken. Cooper Kupp wore a Kobe Bryant jersey and said to the crowd, "We're out here celebrating this championship… Kobe's a part of this."
"He belongs here," Kupp said. "And I'll tell you what, he set the standard. All I know, get back to work... let's run it back."
