Super Bowl Alert—what We Know So Far About The 2025 Big Game

Ad Age is counting down to Super Bowl LIX. In the weeks leading up to the game, which will air on Fox on Feb. 9, Ad Age will bring you breaking news, analysis and first looks at the high-stakes Big Game commercials—all in our Super Bowl newsletter. Sign up right here to get them via email.

Who’s in?

It’s shaping up to be another big year for newcomers—nine brands will be advertising in the game for the first time, according to the latest tally, including Bosch, Coffee mate, Duracell, Häagen-Dazs, Instacart, NerdWallet, Ritz, Totino’s Pizza Rolls and MSC Cruises.  In total, 32 brands have confirmed ads, amounting to about half of the total expected inventory. This year’s pace of publicly confirmed ads is slightly ahead of last year; as of Jan. 18, 2024, Ad Age had confirmed 27 ads for the 2024 game, including eight rookies. 

Of course, there are plenty of returnees—17 brands that advertised in last year’s game have already confirmed they are back, including Squarespace, which today confirmed it will be in its 11th Super Bowl. It teased its spot with a video titled “A Tale as Old as Websites,” showing a man riding a donkey down a country path with Irish bagpipes playing in the background.

One of the game’s biggest regulars, Anheuser-Busch InBev, will run three minutes of ads for Bud Light, Michelob Ultra and Stella Artrois, whose spot will be handled by Artists Equity Advertising, the Ben Affleck-led shop that was behind Dunkin’ Big Game spots in 2023 and 2024 that included the actor and his now-ex, Jennifer Lopez. Stella is not disclosing its cast—but it’s a good bet that Affleck makes an appearance. And Lopez? Not so much.

To keep track of all the advertisers running national spots in the game, bookmark Ad Age’s regularly updated Super Bowl ad chart.

Who’s out?

While beer combatants AB InBev and Molson Coors will have competing spots, other alcohol brands appear poised to stay on the sidelines, Ad Age’s Jon Springer points out, noting that booze brands have not exactly rushed into the game since AB InBev sacrificed its category exclusivity starting in 2023. The automotive category is also shaping up to be pretty light. Jeep is the only brand to confirm a spot so far. Only three automakers ran ads last year—one of them, Toyota, told Ad Age it does not plan to return (although the automaker last year changed its mind last minute.) Kia has not yet revealed it if will return, but it appears likely that Volkswagen, which came back to the game last year after a 10-year absence, is sitting it out.

Calling an audible

News events can often disrupt brand Super Bowl brand plans—and that is the case this year with State Farm, which this week confirmed it is canceling a planned Super Bowl ad as it focuses on the Californians affected by the continuing Los Angeles wildfires. The insurer, which is the largest in the state, has been met with criticism after the company last spring canceled thousands of California home insurance policies, many in now fire-torn areas such as the Palisades. (The LA Times this week reported that the company is now planning to offer renewals to some of those policyholders.) The fires have also resulted in production complications—at least three Super Bowl shoots have been disrupted, Ad Age reported last week, due to resource and safety concerns amid the city’s state of emergency.

Get behind-the-scenes details from Big Game advertisers at Ad Age’s live-streamed Super Bowl Playbook event  on Feb. 4. Register and learn more at AdAge.com/SuperBowl2025.

The waiting game

Fox should not have any trouble filling State Farm’s spot. The network has a waitlist believed to include 10 to 15 brands, according to two media buyers, Ad Age’s Parker Herren reported this week, noting that “Fox notified buyers that brands offered commercial time from the waitlist would be required to commit additional spend across Fox’s portfolio.”

Teaser season

Brands have already begun teasing their spots—a time-honored Super Bowl tradition—in hopes of justifying their multimillion investments by getting some early attention. Reese’s is out with a couple videos showing people rushing up a mountainside toward a volcano spewing lava, which suggests the brand will promote its Chocolate Lava Big Cup, as pointed out by Ad Age Creativity Editor Tim Nudd and Senior Reporter Sabrina Sanchez. Nudd and Sanchez also have the scoop on Häagen-Dazs’ teasers, which foreshadow a car-chase ad, as well as a teaser from Squarespace that includes a laptop-chucking donkey rider.

Keep up with Super Bowl coverage from Ad Age’s Creativity team with daily roundups and sign up for the Creativity Weekly newsletter.

Tubi and TikTok

Fox is not the only place to watch the game. Tubi, the Fox-owned free ad-supported streamer, will simulcast the action with additional coverage including a red carpet hosted by actress and model Olivia Culpo on game day to appeal to Tubi’s Gen Z and millennial-dominant user base, Herren reports. 

But while Tubi is on, TikTok might be off, unless politicians and regulators strike a deal with the Chinese-owned platform to avoid a U.S. ban set to take effect Sunday. There is some hope on that front, with Biden administration officials “exploring options for how to implement the law so TikTok does not go dark Sunday,” NBC News reports. But with all the uncertainty, some brands are planning to use other social media options for Super Bowl marketing, including YouTube, Ad Age reporter Garett Sloane recently noted.

This day in Super Bowl history

Super Bowl VI was played on this day in 1972 when the Cowboys manhandled the Dolphins on CBS, which sold 30 seconds of ad time for a mere $76,000. (Brands today are paying some $7 million for that time.) Coke got plenty of bang for its buck, airing its “Hilltop” ad—​​“I’d like to buy the world a home, and furnish it with love”—which became a classic (and actually first aired in 1971.) The brand returned to the theme with its 1990 Super Bowl ad that staged a Hilltop reunion. It was a gift that kept on giving: The original ad appeared in the final scene of the “Mad Men” finale in 2015 just after Don Draper was seen chanting “Om” in a yoga pose along the California coast.

For a complete look at Big Game commercial history, check out Ad Age’s Super Bowl ad archive.