Super Bowl host cities are normally festooned with decorations leading up to the game. However, on gameday, the Superdome was adorned with something a little different. A tribute to the release of 52 Americans who had been held by Iranian student revolutionaries for 444 days was part of the Super Bowl experience.

The Times-Picayune's John Pope and Ed Anderson wrote, "[t]he team colors were green and white for Philadelphia, black and silver for Oakland, but the dominant color at Super Bowl XV was yellow. Yellow ribbons and bows in all sizes honored the return to the United States of the 52 former hostages. A yellow bow tie 80 feet by 30 feet, with two 180-foot long streamers, hung on the side of the Superdome. Inside, 80,000 small yellow bows - the stick-on kind generally used to adorn gifts - were given to all spectators as they entered the stadium."

Linebacker Rod Martin indicated that the significance of this worldwide event was not lost on the Raiders.

“Approaching the stadium, we all knew about the hostage return from Iran, and once we got in the vicinity of the Superdome, you see the big yellow ribbon around it,” Martin said. “We wanted to be out there having a great game so the hostages coming back would have an enjoyable day as far as looking at football.”

“Here we are playing in Super Bowl XV, the hostages had just gotten released out of Iran, we’ve got the big yellow bow on the stadium, and it was a big event,” Running back Kenny King