Forget lost puppies and horses, adult-like babies, and weird stunts involving snack foods. Instead, this year’s Super Bowl ads will prominently feature social and racial justice issues, along with Covid-19 messages, according to a sports business trade report,
The NFL has already embraced such messages, placing “Black Lives Matter” on player helmets and in end zones. Super Bowl LV will be televised by CBS this year and played at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla. on Feb. 7 if the league schedule is not adjusted by pandemic concerns.
“It’s going to be ‘Black Lives Matter,’ it’s going to be COVID. It’s going to be [about] coming together,” said Bill Oberlander, cofounder and executive creative director of the ad agency OBERLAND, speaking to Front Office Sports.
The reason for the social justice turn is simple, according to a study conducted by Oberland’s firm and real-time market research firm Suzy: Brands are more at risk from saying nothing than speaking out against racism.
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Football? Oh yeah, football. The was once a professional team sport where competitive effort between two teams on a playing field was resolved in the winning team scoring the most points. It also had a vast following.