Super Bowl Sunday has become an unofficial national holiday in the United States. Football fans \u2014 casual or die-hard gather around the television with their favorite foods and snacks – and check out the commercials.
\n\n\n\nSince the first Super Bowl in 1967, the game has grown exponentially and become a gold mine for potential advertisers.
\n\n\n\nBesides the game\u2019s enormous reach, it\u2019s the one day of the year when advertisers are guaranteed consumers will watch their commercials. Many casual fans watch more for the funny, celebrity-filled spots than the football.
\n\n\n\nOver the years, Super Bowl commercials have become one of the most highly anticipated parts of a Super Bowl broadcast. In today\u2019s fragmented media environment, advertisers take advantage of having the exclusive attention of potentially over 100 million viewers. Companies try their best to be one of the most remembered, but some companies flop in their effort to reach consumers.
\n\n\n\nThe first 30-second ad for Super Bowl I between the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs cost $42,500. With inflation adjustments, it would have cost $372,390.34.
\n\n\n\nRising Costs
\n\n\n\nSuper Bowl in-game ad spots first cracked the $1 million mark in 1995. Last year, brand marketers paid a record $7 million ($233,333 per second) for in-game spots during Fox Sports\u2019 telecast of Super Bowl 57.
\n\n\n\nThat\u2019s just for airtime. It doesn\u2019t count the millions in production costs or the big-money fees paid to top directors.
\n\n\n\nThe broadcast networks are smiling at the bank. Last year\u2019s Super Bowl between the Cincinnati Bengals and Los Angeles Rams (98.18 million viewers) generated over $578 million in in-game commercial revenue for NBC, according to research firm Kantar \u2014 an excellent return on investment for the networks and their combined 11-year, $110 billion media rights deal, completed in 2021.
\n\n\n\nCommercial Cost Over Years
\n\n\n\nYear | Cost | Today’s Cost* |
---|---|---|
1967 | $42,500 | $372,390.34 |
1970 | $78,000 | $588,327.06 |
1975 | $107,000 | $582,046.19 |
1980 | $222,000 | $788,463.71 |
1985 | $525,000 | $1,427,917.05 million |
1990 | $700,000 | $1,567,394.80 million |
1995 | $1.2 million | $2,304,370.08 million |
2000 | $2 million | $3,399,012.78 million |
2005 | $2.4 million | $3,718,221.28 million |
2010 | $3 million | $4,026,328.10 million |
2015 | $4.25 million | $5,247,656.29 million |
2021 | $5.5 million | $5,940,150.20 million |
2022 | $6.5 million | — |
2023 | $7 million | — |
2024 | $7 million |