Super Bowl billions: The big business behind the biggest game of the year

Last year, ad spending for commercials during the game totaled almost $380 million, according to Ad Age Datacenter. This year the cost of a 30-second spot exceeds $5 million, more than double what it was 10 years ago. And that’s just the cost for showing the commercial, not creating it and paying the writers, editors, actors, set designers and special-effects artists involved.

“The spot itself may cost $5 million, but the investment in the spot goes much further,” said Val DiFebo, CEO of the ad agency Deutsch NY, who’s worked on “Got milk?” and Go Daddy Super Bowl ads and this year is creating work for Anheuser-Busch’s Busch brand. “The Super Bowl can be more efficient than other mediums because of the visibility you get.” She said the game is not only the world championship of football, it’s also the world championship of advertising. “Nowhere else will you get a live audience — reaching roughly one-third of the U.S. population — that is eagerly anticipating both the game and the ads.”

Beyond reaching a huge audience, Super Bowl advertising has other benefits, DiFebo said. “Not only are people watching live, but they are also engaged and on fire, talking more about the commercials than about the games across multiple social channels. That 30-second ad during a three-hour game essentially has been extended to a three- to four-week opportunity to engage with the consumer.”