Sports Advertising is Striking Out: Here is How to Fix It

2020’s Super Bowl Sunday was one to talk about. Not only was it a reprieve from COVID anxieties, it was another reminder of how important Super Bowl advertising slots still are to the broader advert industry. Even with companies like Budweiser, Coke and Pepsi bowing out of advertising during 2020’s Super Bowl, research out of marketing support company Allocadia showed 37% of viewers were still there solely to watch the commercials.

Leading into the Super Bowl, ad dollars were still flowing to the major broadcast companies. FOX, for example, sold out its 2020 advert slots before the end of 2019, with the highest 30-second slot selling for $5.6 million. So how worth it were those ad dollars? Did it translate to the pop culture and sales impact most companies expect?

Julia Stead, CMO of Allocadia, discusses viewership numbers, and the business case for dropping millions on an ad during a sporting event in today’s post-COVID world of content marketing and owned media.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

 

 

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

Larry North
Resilience, Reinvention, and the Relentless Pursuit of Growth: Larry North’s Journey from Fitness Icon to Private Equity Leader
February 20, 2026

Entrepreneurship is being glamorized in real time. Social media highlights overnight wins, AI tools promise instant scale, and private equity is reshaping industries at a rapid clip. Yet behind every “success story” is something far less flashy: failure, adaptability, and the discipline to keep going when life hits hard. According to the U.S. Bureau…

Read More
Consulting
Consulting Reframed: Perspective, Leadership, and Impact Beyond the Client
February 19, 2026

As organizations navigate accelerating digital transformation, tighter margins, and increasing organizational complexity, the role of consultants is being re-examined. Today’s most effective consulting leaders are no longer valued simply for delivering projects, but for bringing outside perspective, cross-industry insight, and the ability to lead through ambiguity. Most large organizations today are not short on…

Read More
comedy
Laughter as a Service: How Comedy Can Power Trust, Teamwork, and Career Growth
February 19, 2026

Comedy might be the most underused business skill in your toolkit… In a world of back-to-back Zoom calls, Slack threads, and AI-generated everything, real human connection can start to feel like an afterthought. We’re moving faster than ever, but sometimes we’re listening less, reacting more, and missing the small moments that actually build trust. The…

Read More
founder-led brand
The Art of Evolution: Leading a Founder-Led Brand Into Its Next Chapter with Mary Beth Sheridan
February 19, 2026

For many retail brands, growth today isn’t just about innovation — it’s about keeping pace with customers whose expectations are evolving in real time, led by younger generations who expect brands to reflect their values and show up with cultural relevance. In fact, recent research from MG2 found that the overwhelming majority of Gen Z…

Read More