A year to play it safe
Good morning.
An epic overtime offensive drive won the Super Bowl for Kansas City last night. But for advertisers, the game was all defense. At $7 million a pop, Super Bowl ads provide a unique window into the business zeitgeist of the moment. And what we saw this year was a desire to play it safe. There were no crypto businesses trying to break through. No edgy controversies. No social messaging. Just lots of nostalgia and a lot of celebrities. Budweiser led the way: Who can object to a Labrador nuzzling a Clydesdale? And Bud Light attempted to power its comeback with an ad about an unambiguously male genie who grants wishes. No harm, no foul.
Still, the night had its creative moments. My favorite ones were:
Dove soap stayed true to its purpose, with an amusing and moving ad on keeping young girls in sports.
Dunkin’ Donuts and Uber Eats tied for the best use of celebrities.
Messi in a Michelob Ultra ad was the most fun to watch.
Arnold Schwarzenegger taking elocution lessons from Jake from State Farm made me laugh.
And the NFL’s ad for its global player opportunity program, filmed in Ghana, was a delight.
Biggest waste of $7 million? The message-free nostalgiarama run by a super PAC supporting Robert Kennedy that simply repeated the Kennedy name over and over. And the GOAT of Superbowl ad celebrities? Tom Brady, who starred in BetMGM’s ad and also played a supporting role to Ben Affleck in the Dunkin’ ad.
Finally, a shout out to Fortune’s partners at Blackbaud EverFi, who power the NFL’s “Character Playbook” education program that was highlighted in two moving spots in the second half.
Other news below.
Alan Murray
@alansmurray
alan.murray@fortune.com
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com