Nickelodeon Super Bowl Coverage Labels Travis Kelce 'Taylor Swift's Boyfriend,' Teases Leo DiCaprio

Kids network Nickelodeon went viral a few times during and after its inaugural Super Bowl coverage with Spongebob Squarepants and Patrick Star, including a shot at Leonardo DiCaprio's dating history, Dora the Explorer explaining the rules, adorable on-screen labels and plenty of slime.

After 20 years dominating the "cute" realm during Super Bowl Sunday, the Puppy Bowl had better watch out. This season, Nickelodeon offered up its own coverage of the game, complete with commentary from Spongebob and Patrick, and it proved to be must-see TV.

From poking fun at Leonardo DiCaprio to their ridiculous on-screen chryons failing to even give Travis Kelce his own name, instead dubbing him "Taylor Swift's boyfriend," and burning the Kansas City Chiefs for how long it took them to score their first touchdown, it was unadulterated (because it's a kid's network) madness.

It wasn't all insanity, though, as the cartoon characters were joined by legitimate sports commentators Noah Eagle and Nate Burleson, who did a fine job calling the actual game. They were joined by voice actors Tom Kenny and Bill Fagerbakke as Spongebob and Patrick, respectively.

Spongebob performs SWEET VICTORY to open the #SuperBowl on Nickelodeon's broadcastpic.twitter.com/yGvfRpftmh

But, it wasn't the actors that viewers saw any time the camera cut to their control booth at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Instead, they were covered by augmented reality (AR) digital versions of their animated counterparts, completing the illusion. The digitizations even moved along with their live comments.

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And they weren't the only animated characters brought to life with AR throughout the game. There were plenty of other Bikini Bottom residents present on the field and in the stands, including sideline reporting by Sandy Cheeks and attempted game interruptions by Plankton.

Super Bowl LVIII marked the fifth time Nickelodeon has broadcast live coverage of an NFL game, but the first time they'd tackled a Super Bowl. That previous experience, though, certainly showed as most of their on-screen antics played off effortlessly. They even managed to dump (digital) slime on the Kansas City Chiefs in the moment of their overtime victory -- and every other big moment in both endzones.

spongebob yelling touchdown is killing me😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/4xvrwiWhKg

This Super Bowl was also the highest-profile Nickelodeon NFL coverage yet, with CBS's main coverage of the game even giving the broadcast a shout-out, along with a shot of Spongebob and Patrick sitting alongside their human counterparts up in their official announcer's booth.

All of that attention helped the broadcast go viral on social media as many fans found themselves enjoying the sillier take on the big game, as well as some of the unexpected moments of levity the two cartoon commentators offered live along the way.

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One moment that went viral was a very gentle poke at DiCaprio's dating history, referring to the 49-year-old's seeming penchant for moving on from his girlfriends once they surpass 25 years of age. It's been a consistent pattern for so long that news of it apparently even reached Bikini Bottom.

DiCaprio came up during the broadcast as a random point of discussion with Eagle and Burleson. "Leonardo DiCaprio, 25," Spongebob said. He then added, in case that wasn't clear enough, "That's his dating history."

SpongeBob makes a joke about Leonardo DiCaprio on the Nickelodeon #SuperBowl stream.

“Leonardo DiCaprio, 25! That’s his dating history.”pic.twitter.com/Ji1v7iNwrN

As burns go, it was pretty benign, but the fact that Spongebob went there at all was enough to get the moment trending. Other moments that got fans chatting and sharing included Kelce being labeled only "Taylor Swift's Boyfriend" who is "Good at Football," as well as moments where Dora the Explorer pops up to explain the rules of the game. They even cut to fish-ified celebs in the crowd from Megan Thee Sturgeon to Billie Eelish and LePrawn James.

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Some of Bikini Bottom's finest made their way to the Super Bowl ⭐

📺: #SBLVIII on Nickelodeon pic.twitter.com/cXSRTedJFT

Corporate synergy likely played a part in Nickelodeon's coverage of the Super Bowl this year as both it and CBS are part of the Viacom conglomerate. As the Super Bowl rotates coverage between CBS, NBC, and Fox, it could be harder for Nickelodeon to get this on the air over the next two years -- but they should certainly try!

With this kind of attention and an absolutely charming broadcast that's gone even more viral after people started to realize what they'd missed, here's hoping Nickelodeon finds a way to stay involved with NFL (and Super Bowl) coverage for years to come.

You can check out some of the broadcast's most viral moments that fans can't seem to get enough of below. And if you missed out on the fun, Nickelodeon is offering "NFL Slimelights" from their Super Bowl coverage tonight at 7pm ET.

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The voices of Sponge Bob and Patrick on the Nickelodeon Super Bowl set last night pic.twitter.com/BzsWhhqlzO

The Best of Super Bowl LVIII on Nickelodeon pic.twitter.com/021Zgf0osM

Nickelodeon got it 😂 pic.twitter.com/fIlAP9ZG4s

Nickelodeon’s #SuperBowl broadcast has Sandy Cheeks as a sideline reporter.

pic.twitter.com/tQBfmjOXRj

Dora the Explorer explaining a false start: "Where are we going?"

*clap *clap *clap

Boots: "Back 5 yards!"@Nickelodeon pic.twitter.com/XM076d8AOd

Nickelodeon covering the Super Bowl is something else pic.twitter.com/bO77ZUmj7S

The Nickelodeon Super Bowl has been insane pic.twitter.com/C4B7zH1Nat

Patrick Star on the Christian McCaffrey fumble:

"You have to firmly grasp it."@Nickelodeon pic.twitter.com/kGpUwTV8xX

WHO AT NICKELODEON LET THIS SLIDE 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/zj1SoezU1v

I need Nickelodeon to do a companion broadcast on election night. Patrick from SpongeBob explaining the electoral college and slime being dumped on the losing candidate during their concession speech

WHAT IS HAPPENING ON NICKELODEON HELPPP😭😭😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/V9yH6w92Mu

People who are watching #SBLVIII on cbs vs people who are watching #SBLVIII on Nickelodeon pic.twitter.com/Q2F4Jmohch

Of course a Nickelodeon Super Bowl broadcast has slime cannons. pic.twitter.com/MJt5eeLzO2

The Nickelodeon Super Bowl rocks lmao. 49ers dropped a pass and a banner popped up on the screen that said FIRMLY GRASP IT❗️

You're telling me!
This False Start explanation had me almost dying!
I see what people are saying; the Nickelodeon side of the #SuperBowl is where it's at! https://t.co/umplaCohl7 pic.twitter.com/whIWkfd9CI

Yeah, think I will switch to Nickelodeon for the 2nd half, far more entertaining. 😆#Nickelodeon #SuperBowl #SuperBowlLVIII #SBLVIII #SpongeBob pic.twitter.com/fzV03N7aKr

switching to the nickelodeon version of the game really lightened my mood. how can you be stressed when there’s bubbles everywhere?

Nickelodeon swinging a hot bat pic.twitter.com/AKRVVBIykv

Ice Spice, Taylor Swift, & Doodlebob... what a trio 🔥

📺: #SBLVIII on Nickelodeon pic.twitter.com/jRGqjEpNW1

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