'Super Sick Monday': How many plan to miss work after Super Bowl?

Excitement builds for Super Bowl in Las Vegas

Mick Akers with the Las Vegas Review-Journal joins LiveNOW's Lexie Petrovic to talk all things Super Bowl as the big game between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers is just days away.

If you’re planning to skip work the day after Super Bowl LVIII, then you are not alone because an estimated 16.1 million U.S. employees plan to miss work that day.

Six million of these workers will risk a workplace penalty for faking sick or "ghosting" work altogether and not showing up, according to a study from UKG Workforce Institute.

The study also found that 10 million employees have already requested the day off on Monday.

File: Philadelphia Eagles fans react while watching Super Bowl LVII at City Tap House on February 12, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mark Makela/Getty Images)

One reason workers are willing to risk a penalty for missing work is concern about the reaction they may receive if they ask for time off.

According to UKG, about 7% of employees (11.2 million employees) and 10% of managers say they would get reprimanded by leadership if they requested the day off on the Monday after the Super Bowl.

Roughly 14.5 million adults in the U.S. admitted to calling in sick (the so-called "Super Bowl Flu") to work when they weren’t actually sick on the Monday after the Super Bowl, with 11% being managers.

General view of the fans during the Super Bowl LVIII Opening Night presented by Gatorade featuring the AFC Champion Kansas City Chiefs and the NFC Champion San Francisco 49ers on February 5, 2024 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by J

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Should the Super Bowl be a national holiday?

While most workers plan on missing work that day, a large group will show up late. The study noted that 11.2 million employees say they’re "not sure" whether they will miss work while an additional 6.4 million workers say they will decide at the last minute whether to go to work or not.

Separately, about 28% of employees say they will be less productive than usual at work on Monday after the NFL’s biggest game of the year.

And 37% of workers believe the day after the Super Bowl should be a national holiday.

The Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers will face off in Super Bowl LVIII on Sunday, Feb. 11 at 6:30 p.m. ET.

This story was reported from Washington. D.C.