Idon't often wish I had more knowledge about football. But I do now. Because if I did, I'd use a clever analogy to describe the 2025 iteration of the Super Bowl of trade shows. And you'd pin it to your office corkboard.

But, dear readers, your corkboard will remain empty of my words this month because despite spending four years of Friday nights playing halftime shows with my high school marching band, I punt when it comes to football. I do, however, soak up the enthusiasm that surrounds the sport. And in my mind, enthusiasm is where football and the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) are inextricably linked.

I think of my first CES in a series of mental snapshots. Fashion so outlandish it felt like costume. Jet-lagged international visitors power napping in the hall. Eager attendees standing on tiptoe to see the latest tech toy or queuing to participate in carefully orchestrated experiences. Warm doughnuts. Coffee. And when 4:30 rolled around? Cocktails.

CES retains its spot as the biggest tech conference in the world. Pre-audited numbers point to more than 4,500 exhibitors and more than 141,000 attendees from around the globe. The show dominated headlines for weeks, as fired-up journalists fed the hungry minds of those who didn't attend. But there's no denying that there was a significant cultural shift at CES this year.

Most exhibitors shared information via touch screen instead of through experience (though our editorial team did monopolize a row of high-tech pinball machines for a while). Some long-time exhibitors retained their typical footprint size but devoted more of it to private meeting rooms than to public areas. Other returning exhibitors selected smaller footprints. Many of the big players whose exhibits have become CES anchors were noticeably absent. Outside-the-box hospitality went back inside the box, although the coffee bars attracted wrap-around-the-booth lines. I did spot one pair of up-to-there heels, but that could have been a case of poor judgement rather than a fashion statement.

Don't get me wrong — I saw killer booth design, and when we publish our Best of CES list in our next issue, so will you. But compared to years past, energy at the show was different.

Industry colleagues on the show floor expressed a similar sentiment, and we speculated about the reasons behind our observations. Could tech brands be waiting to see how the U.S. economy will react to an incoming administration? Are fears of tariffs and the potential resulting cost increases causing belt tightening? Was the focus on courting business partners' dollars rather than consumers' loyalty a deliberate choice? Or is this simply a natural evolution in the nearly 60-year-old institution?

No matter the reason why the energy at CES felt a little like a post-Super Bowl Monday, I take solace in the fact that trade shows are never stagnant because that points to a vibrant industry consistently striving to meet the needs of an evolving landscape.

On the last day of the show, I shared an elevator with a gentleman who spent floors 16 through 3 performing an elaborate pantomime of his energy levels throughout an event (it ended with him crouched on the floor). We all know energy tends to slide as a show winds down, but we don't have to accept that as inevitable. In this issue, we tell you how to inject a little vigor into a show that's running down the clock. And don't miss the always astute Betsy Earle on page 15 as she lays out a pre-trade-show timeline that you can steal to ensure you don't fumble your deadlines or your budget this year.

As for me? Maybe I'll finally figure out the football lingo before the next season starts. Until then, I'll keep my energy high and my enthusiasm for events undeterred.E