Super Bowl 2025 Ads Reveal Advertising Trends in the Big Game
Americans love Super Bowl Day. And why wouldn’t they? It’s a package deal: an adrenaline-fueled game, a star-studded halftime show, and a spree of over-the-top, mind-blowing ads from beloved brands.
This year’s Super Bowl had all the usual elements: Eagles vs. Chiefs, Kendrick Lamar’s halftime spectacle, and a flood of big-budget ads. However, something felt off. Were the ads lacking creativity? Overly reliant on AI? Or maybe less innovative than in past years?
Well, the numbers offer some answers. According to DAVID’s CES (Creative Effectiveness Score) research, Super Bowl 2025 ads scored the lowest attention levels since 2020. What went wrong?
Here’s what can we learned from this year’s trends in advertising and creativity
Why the magic of Super Bowl 2025 ads falter
There’s no doubt that brands and advertisers bring their A-game regarding Super Bowl ads—and for good reason. The stakes are high: the cost, the fame, and the creative clout of making a memorable ad.
Speaking of cost, Super Bowl ad prices have skyrocketed over the years. In 2025, a 30-second spot hit a record-breaking $8 million. With that kind of investment, brands were under immense pressure to deliver.
But here’s the catch—despite the efforts, the average Super Bowl LIX ad scored just 6.2 out of 10 on DAVID’s CES. The CES measures three key elements: memory, emotions, and attention. This marks the lowest rating since 2020.
So, what does this underwhelming score reveal?
For many ads, the issue was clear: They lacked memorability, didn’t evoke strong emotions, and struggled to maintain engagement. Adding to this challenge, Super Bowl 2025 didn’t surpass last year’s historic ratings, which had been the second most-watched event after the 1969 Apollo 11 moon landing.
In an industry built on creativity, storytelling, and innovation, every misstep is a lesson. With over 40 ads aired during the Super Bowl, it’s time to dig into what worked, what didn’t, and why.
Humor dominated, but was it effective?
According to Samba TV, Nike’s “So WIN” brand ad was the most watched, reaching 28.1 million households. The ad focused on women in sports—no gimmicks, no forced humor, just a powerful, straight-to-the-point message.
Meanwhile, DAVID’s research found that 49 out of 65 ads relied on humor as their primary appeal. But here’s where it gets interesting—the top 10 highest-rated ads weren’t the funniest. Instead, they featured serious themes and nuanced storytelling.
This suggests a shift in audience preferences. Consumers are drawn to purpose-driven campaigns.
Sure, humor is a tried-and-true Super Bowl formula—who doesn’t love a good laugh? But in 2025, funny wasn’t enough. Too many brands played it safe with comedy, resulting in a lineup of forgettable, shallow ads.
The lesson? Entertainment is important, but meaningful storytelling leaves a lasting impression.
Did short-form videos and AI in Super Bowl ads deliver?
The rise of short-form videos, fueled by social media and shrinking attention spans, had a noticeable impact on this year’s Super Bowl ads—and not necessarily in a good way.
Many brands condensed their storytelling, adopting quick videos in a TikTok format. The problem, however, is that TVCs (television commercials) still aren’t optimized for ultra-short formats. This format lacks the depth, nuance, and pivotal storylines to hook an audience for the long haul.
Then came AI’s big moment on Super Bowl Sunday. Tech giants like Meta, Google, Salesforce, and OpenAI showed off their AI-powered tools, signaling that the future of advertising is automated. But here’s the twist—not all AI ads landed well.
While OpenAI’s debut commercial was forgettable, Google’s Gemini ad hit all the right chords.
The key difference? A human touch!
According to USA Today’s Super Bowl Ad Meter, AI-heavy ads ranked near the bottom, including OpenAI’s ChatGPT spot and Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses campaign. Meanwhile, Budweiser’s heartwarming tale of an ambitious Clydesdale foal was the most popular ad. Check it out:
It’s obvious, the audience still craves emotional, human-centered storytelling over cold, tech-driven narratives.
Where was the diversity?
Super Bowl ads often reflect a broader cultural sense. However, Super Bowl 2025 ads took a noticeable step backward regarding inclusivity and diversity.
One study from XR Extreme Reach found that ads in this year’s big game showed a 41% decrease in representation of people with darker skin tones compared to the 2023 Super Bowl. That’s not a small drop—it’s a major shift.
Why? Was it the current political climate, corporate caution, or a miscalculation?
Some speculate that brands feared backlash after what happened with Bud Light’s ill-fated collaboration with a trans activist. That campaign sparked intense controversy, and the beer giant never fully recovered from the fallout.
Adding fuel to the fire, major corporations like Walmart, Meta, and Amazon have been scaling back their DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) initiatives. Whether intentional or not, the lack of representation in Super Bowl 2025 ads didn’t go unnoticed.
Food brands went big on humor (and it worked)
If one industry dominated the Super Bowl 2025 ad space, it was food and beverages.
From Uber Eats and Mountain Dew to Pringles and Hellmann’s, brands leaned into humor, which sometimes paid off.
Pringles’ flying mustaches and Little Caesars Pizza’s ‘woah’ eyebrows had audiences laughing, while Budweiser’s legendary Clydesdales delivered the much-needed dose of nostalgia and emotion.
In a year when many ads struggled to make an impact, the food industry proved that humor—when done right—can still be a winning formula.
Cut to the chase
Advertisers and brands went all in with their creativity in Super Bowl 2025. However, the performance did not turn out as it should have. The trends that covered the Super Bowl 2025 ads were visible, but did they work?
