*This article has been updated for Super Bowl 2025 with the latest industry trends and strategies to maximize sponsorship ROI.
Today’s media, economic and social landscape remain in flux. While the economy showed signs of resilience in 2024, inflationary pressures and shifting consumer behaviors are raising concerns about sustainable growth. At the same time, media spend is at an all-time high, with global advertising on track to top $1.1 trillion in 2025 (up from $1 trillion in 2024). It’s a stark reminder that brands are facing record-high costs and increased pressure to prove ROI. And the Super Bowl – a pinnacle of both sports and advertising – serves as a timely reminder that every marketing dollar must work harder than ever.
Super Bowl ads aired to just over 123 million viewers (up from 110 million viewers in 2023).
The prevailing theory is that a Super Bowl advertising campaign can have an immediate demand impact in the weeks following the Super Bowl. But how effective is a Super Bowl campaign at driving business performance, particularly when the cost of a 30-second commercial spot averages upwards of $8 million dollars (up from an average of $7 million in 2024)?
With many considerations for marketers to weigh with their budgets: from media fragmentation, scarcity of customer attention, and balancing brand impact versus performance value, how do brands determine whether a Super Bowl ad is right for them?