This Sunday, Feb. 5, if you’re not tuned into Super Bowl XLVI, you represent roughly two-thirds of the U.S population and you probably live under a rock. Ok, that’s extreme but you get the idea.
As the New York Giants take on the New England Patriots in the football game of the year, lives will change, bragging rights will be claimed and one set of pre-made jerseys, newspapers, hats and other such paraphernalia bearing the name of the losers will be trashed.
JBCStyle is a fashion recruiting firm; however, we specialize in so much more than fashion. One of our fastest growing areas of expertise is the advertising and marketing segment brought to you by JBCconnect. That said, we can appreciate a good football game but we can also appreciate the commercials. Just as anticipated as the game itself, if not more, the commercials will most likely be the topic of water cooler conversations come Monday.
I consulted my colleagues and we rounded up a nice list of our favorite Super Bowl commercials from the previous years. In no particular order:
Last year, when the Greenbay Packers beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 31 – 25, Fox released these mind-blowing stats:
- Super Bowl XLV averaged 111 million viewers making it the most-watched television program in U.S. history.
- The prior year, Super Bowl XLIV brought in over 106.5 million viewers obliterating the
106 millionviewers who tuned into the series finale of M*A*S*H. The show held the viewership record from 1983 to 2010! - The airing of Super Bowl XLV went down as FOX’s most-watched night of prime time. Ever.
- Among adults 18-49, Super Bowl XLV made this Fox’s highest-rated night. Yea, ever.
- It was also the most-watched night on any network in at least 20 years.
The numbers beg the question, what is it that draws millions of people to tune in to the Super Bowl? Is it the seemingly innate rivalry among the competing teams? Maybe it’s the love of the game? Of course, a die-hard fan must watch. Could it be the Super Bowl party that brings everyone together better than Christmas?
These are all good reasons but maybe it’s the highly anticipated commercials. This year, with some ads going for about $3.5 million a pop, a pop equaling 30 seconds, claiming a spot during the Super Bowl is an event all its own. And the commercials? Oh they better be above-above average and prepared for post-Super Bowl criticism. Lots of pressure for a mere 30 seconds. Most brands and ad agencies live and breath for Super Bowl. A hit or miss will go down in history and determine your Super Bowl advertising future. No pressure.
On that note, whether you will be watching the game or not, what’s your favorite Super Bowl commercial past?
