Super Bowl Advertisers Navigate National Anxiety with Health Focus and Humour
At a time of significant unease across America, advertisers during the Super Bowl broadcast have crafted messages encouraging viewers to prioritise self-care and community support, all while delivering the traditional comedic relief associated with the event. With consumer confidence hitting its lowest point since 2014 in January, alongside widespread outrage over recent protests and severe winter weather, the atmosphere is one of collective stress.
Emphasising Care and Connection in Commercials
Several notable advertisements leaned into themes of care and neighbourhood support. Ring demonstrated how doorbell cameras could assist in locating lost pets, while a Budweiser Clydesdale was depicted sheltering a bald eagle chick from rainfall. Pharmaceutical giant Novartis promoted a blood test designed for early prostate cancer detection, and Toyota reinforced the importance of seatbelt usage. The spirit of Mister Rogers was invoked in two separate spots: Lady Gaga performed his classic song "Won't You Be My Neighbor?" for Rocket Companies, and the National Football League utilised his "You Are Special" message to highlight its youth sports initiatives.
Vann Graves, executive director of the Brandcenter at Virginia Commonwealth University, commented on the broader context, stating, "There is a collective trauma. Everybody is stressed out. It doesn’t matter who you are, it’s something that’s impacting everyone." He noted that Super Bowl advertisements provide a crucial respite and a rare shared moment for the public, allowing people to "just be human and be silly and enjoy ourselves."
Humour and Celebrity-Driven Campaigns
The comedic element remained strong, with numerous celebrities featuring in light-hearted campaigns. Sabrina Carpenter attempted to construct the perfect man using Pringles crisps, while Benson Boone and Ben Stiller formed a disco duo celebrating Instacart. Andy Samberg, portraying "Meal Diamond," humorously applied Hellmann's mayonnaise to sandwiches for customers including Elle Fanning. In a playful twist, Coca-Cola's iconic polar bears were shown sharing a Pepsi, parodying last year's viral kiss cam moment.
Delivery service rivalries also took centre stage. George Clooney promoted Grubhub's free delivery offer, Matthew McConaughey featured in an Uber Eats ad suggesting football is a conspiracy to induce hunger, and rapper 50 Cent trolled Sean 'Diddy' Combs in a spot for DoorDash.
Artificial Intelligence Dominates Airwaves
Artificial intelligence emerged as a prominent theme across several advertisements. Oakley Meta showcased its AI-enabled glasses in action-packed segments featuring Spike Lee and Marshawn Lynch. Wix introduced Wix Harmony, an AI tool for website design, while Svedka Vodka collaborated with Silverside AI to create an ad starring its robot mascots FemBot and BroBot. However, AI advertisements were not without controversy. Anthropic aired commercials highlighting that its chatbot, Claude, is ad-free, prompting a response from OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman, who announced plans to test ads on ChatGPT.
Amazon's ad starring Chris Hemsworth, which mocked public fears of AI, aired shortly after the company laid off 16,000 corporate workers, some potentially replaced by AI. Tim Calkins, a clinical professor of marketing at Northwestern University, observed, "I suspect this is meant to be funny, but it might reinforce some people’s very real concerns about AI."
Health and Wellness Take Centre Stage
Alongside traditional snack promotions like Ritz crackers and Lay's crisps, there was a significant emphasis on health. Octavia Spencer and Sofia Vergara encouraged kidney disease testing for Boehringer Ingelheim, and Mike Tyson discussed his sister's obesity-related death in an ad advocating for unprocessed foods. GLP-1 weight loss drugs featured prominently, with Novo Nordisk promoting Wegovy pills starring Kenan Thompson and others, and telehealth firm Ro showcasing its GLP-1s with Serena Williams. Hims & Hers emphasised accessibility to healthcare beyond the wealthy with its own GLP-1 pill.
Nostalgia and Record-Breaking Ad Prices
Advertisers also tapped into nostalgia to uplift viewers. T-Mobile featured the Backstreet Boys performing a rendition of their 1999 hit, Volkswagen used House of Pain's 1992 track "Jump Around," and Xfinity reunited "Jurassic Park" stars Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum in a humorous sketch.
The Super Bowl continues to attract advertisers due to its massive audience, with 127.7 million U.S. viewers in 2025 across television and streaming platforms. Jura Liaukonyte, a marketing professor at Cornell University, explained that companies pay a premium for these spots to reach a unified audience. This year, average ad costs reached $8 million per 30-second unit, with some spots selling for over $10 million, a record high according to Peter Lazarus of NBC Sports, who dubbed February "legendary" due to the Super Bowl, Olympics, and NBA All-Star Game.
