Super Bowl Commercials Cost Every Year Since 1967
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The Super Bowl isn't just an event for people to watch football. It's an advertising spectacle. Companies drop millions of dollars for a 30-second ad slot, hoping to get the attention of 100 million people around the world.
The biggest winners and losers of the Super Bowl aren't just the teams in the game. It's which companies made the commercial that struck all the right chords. And the ones that didn't.
But it wasn't always like that. In fact, the first Super Bowl commercials weren't really any different than what you'd see on any other program in the 1960s and even the 1970s. But as the event grew, so too did the ad budget put into these commercials. And so did the cost needed to air them.
This is what Super Bowl commercials cost every year since Super Bowl I in 1967 and the most memorable Super Bowl ads from each big game.
1967: Super Bowl I
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $42,000
Adjusted for inflation: $325,450
Teams: Green Bay Packers vs. Kansas City Chiefs (winning team listed first)
Network: CBS and NBC
Announcers: Ray Scott, Jack Whitaker and Frank Gifford for CBS. Curt Gowdy and Paul Christman for NBC
Nielsen ratings: 51.18 million total
Market share: CBS: 43, NBC: 36, Total: 79
Bottom line: Before the Super Bowl was rebranded as the Super Bowl, it was known as the AFL-NFL World Championship Game. One of the first Super Bowl commercials was a ridiculously sexist ad by Goodyear. It shows a flat tire and then a woman walking in the dark.
"This flat tire needs a man," says a male narrator. "But when there's no man around, Goodyear should be."
"They weren’t really expecting women to watch," Danielle Sarver Coombs, an associate professor at Kent State University, told Smithsonian. Of course, Goodyear didn't. All the women were helplessly stranded on the road, waiting for a man.
Watch the Super Bowl I Goodyear ad.
1968: Super Bowl II
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $42,500-75,000
Adjusted for inflation: $316,076-$557,782
Teams: Green Bay Packers vs. Oakland Raiders
Network: CBS
Announcers: Ray Scott, Pat Summerall and Jack Kemp
Nielsen ratings: 36.8
Market share: 68
Bottom line: The cost of airing a commercial during Super Bowl II vary. Some sources, like Super Bowl Ads, puts the price of a 30-second spot at $42,500, while Time magazine reported at the time that a one-minute commercial cost $75,000.
A Time critic called the ads "unimaginative, and, worse, cluttered with clichés and network promotions. One 'promo' actually ran right through a kickoff. Paid commercials also got in the way— but it was easy to see why. Commercial time for the Super Bowl telecast sold for an unprecedented $150,000 a minute."
Which is probably why there are no notable commercials of that time. But it's still interesting to see some commercials from then.
Check out these 1968 Ford Mustang commercials.
1969: Super Bowl III
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $42,500-$55,000
Adjusted for inflation: $299,713-$387,863
Teams: New York Jets vs. Baltimore
Network: NBC
Announcers: Curt Gowdy, Al DeRogatis and Kyle Rote
Nielsen ratings: 36
Market share: 71
Bottom line: One of the most notable commercials for Super Bowl III was an ad for Plymouth's Road Runner, a car that had an unusual look and was Looney Toon branded.
The Road Runner became one of the best muscle cars of all time.
Watch Plymouth's Super Bowl III ad.
1970: Super Bowl IV
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $78,000
Adjusted for inflation: $520,290
Teams: Kansas City Chiefs vs. Minnesota Vikings
Network: CBS
Announcers: Jack Buck and Pat Summerall
Nielsen ratings: 39.4
Market share: 69
Bottom line: Pontiac made a Super Bowl IV commercial for its GTO Humbler muscle car.
The Humbler had a vacuum operated exhausted system that could be switched on via a pull control on the inside. The control opened up the exhaust, giving it improved performance and a lot more noise.
The commercial has a wonderfully cheesy jingle.
Watch the GTO Humbler commercial.
1971: Super Bowl V
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $72,000
Adjusted for inflation: $460,108
Teams: Baltimore Colts vs. Dallas Cowboys
Network: NBC
Announcers: Curt Gowdy, Kyle Rote and Bill Enis
Nielsen ratings: 39.9
Market share: 75
Bottom line: Coca-Cola released one of their most famous commercials of all time, "Hilltop," for Super Bowl V.
More popularly known as "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke," the minute-long commercial featured a bunch of people singing on a hill.
Coke paid around $144,000 for this ad.
Watch the commercial.
1972: Super Bowl VI
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $86,000
Adjusted for inflation: $532,481
Teams: Dallas Cowboys vs. Miami Dolphins
Network: CBS
Announcers: Ray Scott and Pat Summerall
Nielsen ratings: 44.2
Market share: 74
Bottom line: Vitalis made waves with its 1972 Super Bowl commercial because it featured a woman in a man's locker room.
After hocking the hairspray, the woman pats a player on the butt and tells him "Good game," something which also probably upset conservative Americans at the time.
Watch the famous Vitalis commercial.
1973: Super Bowl VII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $88,000
Adjusted for inflation: $512,958
Teams: Miami Dolphins vs. Washington Redskins
Network: NBC
Announcers: Curt Gowdy, Al DeRogatis, Bill Enis
Nielsen ratings: 42.7
Market share: 72
Bottom line: The famous Mad Men of Madison Avenue came up with the Noxema commercial, which was wildly popular.
A smiling Joe Namath announces, "I'm so excited. I'm gonna get creamed!" And Farrah Fawcett appears with some shaving cream, which she slathers over his face as a jingle with the word, "Let Noxema cream your face" plays in the background.
The obvious sexual innuendo made it famous.
Watch that commercial here.
1974: Super Bowl VIII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $103,000
Adjusted for inflation: $512,958
Teams: Miami Dolphins vs. Minnesota Vikings
Network: CBS
Announcers: Ray Scott, Pat Summerall and Bart Starr
Nielsen ratings: 41.6
Market share: 73
Bottom line: The 1974 Super Bowl was the first time a 30-second ad spot broke the $100,000 mark. It was expensive then, but people would kill for it now.
In the 1960s, Master Lock debuted an ad wherein a man with a handgun takes aim at and fires a bullet into one of its locks. The lock remains closed. But when they released it, people didn't believe it was real, and Master Lock shootings dramatically increased.
"People didn’t believe it, so they’d take a padlock and shoot at it and send in the lock," former Master Lock advertising director Edson F. Allen told the Milwaukee Journal. "Master Lock looked at the locks, which had wadding from the shells stuck in the laminations, and realized that people walking up to locks and shooting at them was very dangerous."
They pulled the ad from the airwaves but later retooled the ad for the 1974 Super Bowl. Instead of a handgun, they used a sharpshooter who positioned himself farther away.
Watch the Master Lock commercial.
1975: Super Bowl IX
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $107,000
Adjusted for inflation: $514,735
Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Minnesota Vikings
Network: NBC
Announcers: Curt Gowdy, Al DeRogatis, Don Meredith
Nielsen ratings: 424.4
Market share: 72
Bottom line: McDonald's paid $214,000 to air a commercial for its Big Mac. It was smart and simple: Could people remember the ingredients that went on a Big Mac?
If you can't, it's two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a sesame seed bun.
Watch the famous McDonald's commercial.
1976: Super Bowl X
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $110,000
Adjusted for inflation: $500,337
Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Dallas Cowboys
Network: CBS
Announcers: Pat Sumerall, Tom Brookshier, Hank Stram
Nielsen ratings: 42.3
Market share: 78
Bottom line: A great example of an ad during the Super Bowl during the mid-1970s is Xerox's classic "Monk" ad.
A monk painstakingly copies a scroll by hand and gives it to his superior, who tells him to go do it 500 more times.
Instead of working hard, the monk works smart, and heads on over to Xerox for 500 copies.
Watch the famous Xerox commercial.
1977: Super Bowl XI
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $125,000
Adjusted for inflation: $533,851
Teams: Oakland Raiders vs. Minnesota Vikings
Network: NBC
Announcers: Curt Gowdy and Don Meredith
Nielsen ratings: 44.4
Market share: 73
Bottom line: Ads increased another $15,000 for Super Bowl XI.
That year, Burger King released a commercial called "America's Burger King," which featured a bunch of people doing happy things and eating burgers. Uninspired? Yes. Catchy jingle? Meh.
You be the judge.
Watch the Burger King commercial.
1978: Super Bowl XII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $162,000
Adjusted for inflation: $643,058
Teams: Dallas Cowboys vs. Denver Broncos
Network: CBS
Announcers: Pat Summerall and Tom Brookshier
Nielsen ratings: 47.2
Market share: 67
Bottom line: CBS tacked on an additional $37,000 to its 30-second fees for Super Bowl XII. But despite those fees, there are no real classic Super Bowl ads from that time.
The closest we have to a decent example of a 1978 Super Bowl commercial is an ad from McDonald's, which offered an official Super Bowl XII poster for anyone who ordered a quarter pounder and a Coke.
Watch the commercial.
1979: Super Bowl XIII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $185,000
Adjusted for inflation: $659,504
Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Dallas Cowboys
Network: NBC
Announcers: Curt Gowdy, John Brodie, Merlin Olsen
Nielsen ratings: 47.1
Market share: 74
Bottom line: Coca-Cola made their first true classic Super Bowl ad with the "Hey Kid, Catch" ad starring "Mean" Joe Greene.
After a kid gives an injured Greene a bottle of coke, he tosses the boy his jersey.
It also happened during one of the best Super Bowls on records, with the Pittsburgh Steelers beating the Dallas Cowboys 35-31.
Watch the famous Coke commercial.
1980: Super Bowl XIV
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $222,000-$275,000
Adjusted for inflation: $697,282-$863,750
Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Los Angeles Rams
Network: CBS
Announcers: Pat Summerall and Tom Brookshier
Nielsen ratings: 46.3
Market share: 67
Bottom line: Paul Masson dropped between $220,000 to $275,000 to air a commercial that had Orson Welles trying to persuade you to buy his wine. The aging actors' pronunciation of Masson is long and drawn out, perfect for parody.
Welles was so drunk during this commercial that the ad agency chopped together whatever they could use that day and dubbed the spot whenever Welles had sobered up and could read his lines properly.
Watch Welles' Super Bowl commercial, and then check out Welle's drunken outtakes.
1981: Super Bowl XV
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $275,000
Adjusted for inflation: $782,981
Teams: Oakland Raiders vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Network: NBC
Announcers: Dick Enberg, Merlin Olsen, John Brodie, Len Dawson
Nielsen ratings: 44.4
Market share: 63
Bottom line: Chrysler dropped $275,000 on a 30-second spot during Super Bowl XV just so they could attack Ford and GM.
Set on a football field, a salesman talks up how Chrysler's sales are up while competition is down, and that Chrysler will help you with cashback payments and low-interest rates to finance your car while the other car manufacturers don't.
Watch the ad, dubbed "Momentum."
1982: Super Bowl XVI
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $324,000
Adjusted for inflation: $868,961
Teams: San Francisco 49ers vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Network: CBS
Announcers: Pat Summerall, John Madden
Nielsen ratings: 49.1
Market share: 73
Bottom line: Super Bowl XVI was the first Super Bowl that John Madden announced. It was also the first time the 49ers clinched a Super Bowl victory.
Commercial-wise, McDonald's aired an ad featuring children who appear to be so hopelessly addicted to McDonald's that they're repeating menu items as they play hopscotch.
The tune brainwashes anyone who hears it. They work themselves into a dancing frenzy and then storm the closest McDonald's they can find.
Watch the McDonald's "Hopscotch" commercial.
1983: Super Bowl XVII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $400,000
Adjusted for inflation: $1,039,401
Teams: Washington Redskins vs. Miami Dolphins
Network: NBC
Announcers: Dick Enberg, Merlin Olsen
Nielsen ratings: 48.6
Market share: 63
Bottom line: This year, McDonald's, Wendy's and Burger King were involved in a grease-flinging war over which brand could clog America's heart with the most sales.
Burger King went on the offensive with the "Ultimate Weapon" commercial. A pre-famous Elisabeth Shue makes the compelling choice to "switch to Burger King" — and the commercial shows a Whopper being made.
"We hope it won't be necessary to do this again," she says.
Watch Burger King's "Ultimate Weapon" commercial.
1984: Super Bowl XVIII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $368,000
Adjusted for inflation: $916,674
Teams: Los Angeles Raiders vs. Washington Redskins
Network: CBS
Announcers: Pat Summerall, John Madden
Nielsen ratings: 46.4
Market share: 71
Bottom line: Super Bowl XVIII had perhaps the most iconic Super Bowl commercial of all time. This was the year that Apple made its famous "1984" commercial.
The famous ad had actually played in a few local outlets a month prior, at the last possible slot before midnight on Dec. 31, 1983. This made it possible for the ad to be nominated in the upcoming Clio Awards.
The commercial is frequently cited as one of the best, and sometimes the best, commercial of all time.
Watch Apple's "1984" commercial.
1985: Super Bowl XIX
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $525,000
Adjusted for inflation: 1,262,786
Teams: San Francisco 49ers vs. Miami Dolphins
Network: ABC
Announcers: Frank Gifford, Don Meredith, Joe Theisman
Nielsen ratings: 46.4
Market share: 63
Bottom line: While Apple made a huge splash in 1984, it also released a pretty cool commercial for the following year's Super Bowl. Called "Lemmings," Apple's Super Bowl XIX commercial shows a series of blindfolded businesses people walking in lockstep off a cliff.
This commercial was used to announce Macintosh Office. "You could look into it, or you could go on with business as usual," says the narrator, as the camera pans to another line of businesspeople heading toward a cliff.
Watch Apple's "Lemmings" commercial.
1986: Super Bowl XX
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $550,000
Adjusted for inflation: $1,310584
Teams: Chicago Bears vs. New England Patriots
Network: NBC
Announcers: Dick Enberg, Merlin Olsen, Bob Griese
Nielsen ratings: 48.3
Market share: 70
Bottom line: The Bears clinched their first (and only) Super Bowl victory in 1986, but don't let that distract you from the American Dairy Association's amazing "Cheese, Glorious Cheese" commercial.
The 30-second ad is an homage to everything cheesy, with a catchy jingle based on the opening song, "Food, Glorious Food," from the musical "Oliver."
Watch the "Cheese, Glorious Cheese" ad, and sing the praises of cheese to the heavens.
1987: Super Bowl XXI
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $600,000
Adjusted for inflation: $1,366,959
Teams: New York Giants vs. Denver Broncos
Network: CBS
Announcers: Pat Summerall, John Madden
Nielsen ratings: 45.8
Market share: 66
Bottom line: Now at $600,000 per 30-second ad slot, some companies, like Pepsi, were willing to spend big bucks on getting hot stars to shell their products.
Pepsi's 1987 Super Bowl commercial, "New Neighbors," stars Michael J. Fox in his apartment. A woman comes in and asks to "borrow" a Diet Pepsi. Fox says sure, but, realizing he doesn't have it, jumps out the window and down the fire escape to procure one.
Watch the 30-second commercial that aired and then check out the 90-second version that ended up on YouTube.
1988: Super Bowl XXII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $645,000
Adjusted for inflation: $1,411,099
Teams: Washington Redskins vs. Denver Broncos
Network: ABC
Announcers: Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf
Nielsen ratings: 41.9
Market share: 62
Bottom line: Millions of people watched the Super Bowl with an ice-cold beer in their hand. In 1988, chances are it was a Budweiser. That year, Budweiser was the biggest beer company in America, shipping 50.4 million barrels.
So it was a no-brainer for Budweiser to spend $645,000 for a 30-second ad slot in Super Bowl XXII. The commercial touted the beer's "promise" of quality.
Watch Budweiser's "The Promise" commercial.
1989: Super Bowl XXIII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $675,000
Adjusted for inflation: $1,408,850
Teams: San Francisco 49ers vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Network: NBC
Announcers: Dick Enberg, Merlin Olsen
Nielsen ratings: 43.5
Market share: 68
Bottom Line: While the San Francisco 49ers and the Cincinnati Bengals battled it out on the field, Budweiser created its own stop motion football game that pitted Budweiser bottles against Bud Light bottles.
"Bud Bowl I" played out during commercial break of Super Bowl XXIII over a few different commercials. The Bud Bowl campaign continued until 1997, when Budweiser beat Bud Light 27-24.
Watch the "Bud Bowl I" commercial.
1990: Super Bowl XXIV
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $700,000
Adjusted for inflation: $1,386,133
Teams: San Francisco vs. Denver Broncos
Network: CBS
Announcers: Pat Summerall, John Madden, Irv Cross, Will McDonough
Nielsen ratings: 39
Market share: 63
Bottom line: The Broncos lost their third Super Bowl in four years at Super Bowl XXIV, but in the advertising world, 1990 was a big win for Nissan.
The car company released a Super Bowl commercial promoting its 300ZX Turbo, and they enlisted "Blade Runner" director Ridley Scott to make what is essentially a 60-second movie car chase scene.
Nothing can catch the 300ZX Turbo. Not a motorcycle, Formula One car or low-flying jet.
Watch Nissan's "Dreamer" commercial.
1991: Super Bowl XXV
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $800,000
Adjusted for inflation: $1,520,182
Teams: New York Giants vs. Buffalo Bills
Network: ABC
Announcers: Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf, Lynn Swann, Jack Artue
Nielsen ratings: 41.8
Market share: 63
Bottom line: Do you remember the "Uh Huh, You Got the Right One Baby?" jingle/phrase? It was everywhere for a while in the early 1990s, and it was all thanks to Pepsi and Ray Charles.
The duo teamed up to release a series of commercials during Super Bowl XXV, which helped boost Pepsi's sales. The soft drink company was hurting after major fast-food chains switched their drink machines to Coca-Cola brands.
Watch the Pepsi "Uh Huh" commercials.
1992: Super Bowl XXVI
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $850,000
Adjusted for inflation: $1,567,992
Teams: Washington Redskins vs. Buffalo Bills
Network: CBS
Announcers: Par Summerall, John Madden, Lesley Visser, Pat O'Brien, Jim Gray
Nielsen ratings: 40.3
Market share: 61
Bottom line: Two interesting things occurred during the 1992 Super Bowl: Fox ran the first Super Bowl counterprogramming segment in history, and Pepsi aired a commercial that became one of the most famous commercials in advertising history.
This was the year that Pepsi released its iconic ad with Cindy Crawford, who takes a long drink out of a Pepsi can while two young boys watch in awe.
But they're not looking at Crawford. They're ogling the new Pepsi can design. It was a minute long, meaning Pepsi shelled out $1.7 million to air it.
Watch the Cindy Crawford Pepsi ad.
1993: Super Bowl XXVII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $850,000
Adjusted for inflation: $1,522,417
Teams: Dallas Cowboys vs. Buffalo Bills
Network: NBC
Announcers: Dick Enberg, Bob Trumpy, O.J. Simpson, Todd Christensen
Nielsen ratings: 45.1
Market share: 66
Bottom line: Basketball was insanely popular in the 1990s thanks in part to Michael Jordan. Naturally, Nike partnered with the legendary Bulls player and, in a brilliant move, also partnered with Warner Bros.' Looney Toons characters.
The first commercial to feature Michael Jordan and Bugs Bunny ran during Super Bowl XXVI, but it was so popular that Nike created a new commercial for the following year's Super Bowl.
This time, the commercial was extended to 90 seconds (and cost $1.7 million) and promoted a new pair of Hare Jordans.
Watch the 1993 Hare Jordans commercial.
1994: Super Bowl XXVIII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $900,000
Adjusted for inflation: $1,571,726
Teams: Dallas Cowboys vs. Buffalo Bills
Network: NBC
Announcers: Dick Enberg, Bob Trumpy, O.J. Simpson, Will McDonough
Nielsen ratings: 45.4
Market share: 66
Bottom line: The soft drink wars played out in real time on television, with Coke and Pepsi continuing their battle to clinch America's sweet tooth. The 1990s were notable because these ads became more outrageous and weirder.
Pepsi's Super Bowl XXVIII ad showed a laboratory with two test chimps. One is fed only Coke, the other is only fed Pepsi. The Coke-drinking chimp showed an improvement in motor skills, while the Pepsi-drinking chimp left the laboratory altogether, opting to fill a Jeep full of women and drive about a beach.
The message: Pepsi is more fun than Coke.
Watch Pepsi's "Chimps Lab" commercial.
1995: Super Bowl XXIX
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $1.15 million
Adjusted for inflation: $1,952,970
Teams: San Francisco 49ers vs. San Diego Chargers
Network: ABC
Announcers: Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf, Lynn Swann, Lesley Visser
Nielsen ratings: 41.6
Market share: 63
Bottom line: Three frogs, three croaked syllables: Bud. Weis. Er.
Budweiser's "Frogs" commercial was an incredibly simple and enormously effective commercial that became one of the best advertising campaigns in history. And did you know that it was directed by Gore Verbinksi, who went on to direct the first three "Pirates of the Caribbean" films?
Super Bowl XXIX was also the first year that a 30-second commercial broke the $1 million mark in costs.
Watch the first "Frogs" commercial.
1996: Super Bowl XXX
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $1.085 million
Adjusted for inflation: $1,789,738
Teams: Dallas Cowboys vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Network: NBC
Announcers: Dick Enberg, Phil Simms, Paul Maguire, Jim Gray, Will McDonough
Nielsen ratings: 46
Market share: 68
Bottom line: Oddly, ad costs for Super Bowl XXX were about $65,000 less than the previous year's Super Bowl.
This year, McDonald's released a commercial called "Swing." It showed a baby swinging on a baby swing, becoming happy when the swing moved toward the camera and sad when it swung away from it.
At the end of the commercial, the camera switches to behind the baby, showing a set of McDonald's golden arches in the window (and it's in terrible CGI). It's a weird video, but it was effective.
Watch the "Swing" commercial.
1997: Super Bowl XXXI
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $1.2 million
Adjusted for inflation: $1,935,035
Teams: Green Bay Packers vs. New England Patriots
Network: Fox
Announcers: Pat Summerall, John Madden, Ron Pitts, Bill Maas
Nielsen ratings: 43.3
Market share: 65
Bottom line: George Lucas released the the "Star Wars" special-edition boxed set (the one with the terrible CGI) in 1997.
For Super Bowl XXXI, Lucas teamed up with Pepsi to release an advertisement that featured a child drinking a Pepsi in a theater while watching "Star Wars."
Darth Vader force-drinks the cup from inside the movie screen, prompting an elderly usher to stand up for the little kid and fight Vader with a lightsaber.
Watch the Pepsi "Star Wars" commercial.
1998: Super Bowl XXXII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $1.3 million
Adjusted for inflation: $2,064,136
Teams: Denver Broncos vs. Green Bay Packers
Network: Fox
Announcers: Pat Summerall, John Madden, Ron Pitts, Bill Maas
Nielsen ratings: 43.3
Market share: 65
Bottom line: Now costing a cool $1.3 million per 30-second commercial, Super Bowl ads were well on their way to becoming their own reason for watching.
There were a number of great commercials during Super Bowl XXXII, and one of the most notable was an American Express commercial starring Jerry Seinfeld and a cartoon Superman.
The commercial was slotted for the last ad spot of the night and was created by Ogilvy and Mather.
Watch the commercial.
1999: Super Bowl XXXIII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $1.6 million
Adjusted for inflation: $2,485,579
Teams: Denver Broncos vs. Atlanta Falcons
Network: Fox
Announcers: Pat Summerall, John Madden, Ron Pitts, Bill Maas
Nielsen ratings: 40.2
Market share: 61
Bottom line: Apple came back to the Super Bowl for the first time in 14 years with its "2001" commercial.
Using just the red-eyed HAL 9000 from "2001: A Space Odyssey," the commercial insinuated that the Y2K bug would hit Windows users, but Macintosh was "designed to function perfectly" for the great time clock rollover.
Of course, it was all bull, but it made for a great commercial.
Watch Apple's "2001" commercial.
2000: Super Bowl XXXIV
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $1.9
Adjusted for inflation: $2,855,638
Teams: Los Angeles Rams vs. Tennessee Titans
Network: ABC
Announcers: Al Michaels, Boomer Esiason, Lesley Visser, Lynn Swann
Nielsen ratings: 4.3
Market share: 63
Bottom line: Commercials nearly reached $2 million for 30 seconds of space for Super Bowl XXXIV.
Absurdist humor was in full force in the late 1990s until the mid-2000s. EDS, a digital strategy company, made a damn good ad for Super Bowl XXXIV called "Cat Herders."
In it, a group of heroic cowboys (some injured) are shown herding hundreds of cats over the Southwestern plains. At the end, text on the screen ties it all together: "In a sense, this is what we do. We bring together information, ideas and technologies and make them go where you want."
Watch the "Cat Herders" commercial.
2001: Super Bowl XXXV
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $2.1 million
Adjusted for inflation: $3,070,638
Teams: Baltimore Ravens vs. New York Giants
Network: CBS
Announcers: Standard definition: Greg Gumbel, Phill Simms, Armen Keteyian, Bonnie Bernstein; HD: Kevin Harlan, Daryl Johnston
Nielsen ratings: 40.3
Market share: 60
Bottom line: Budweiser aired its famous "Wassup?" commercial in 1999 during a game of Monday Night Football. The "Wassup" campaign became a part of pop culture (even today, it's sometimes used, albeit ironically).
In 2001, for Super Bowl XXXV — the same year that commercials broke the $2 million barrier — Budweiser spoofed that iconic campaign with a straight-laced version.
Budweiser swapped out a bunch of laid-back dudes hanging out on the phone with a bunch uppity "preppy" guys shouting "What are YOU doing?" instead of "Wassup?"
Watch the "What are YOU doing" commercial.
2002: Super Bowl XXXVI
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $1.9 million
Adjusted for inflation: $2,733,412
Teams: New England Patriots vs. St. Louis Rams
Network: Fox
Announcers: Pat Summerall, John Madden, Pam Oliver, Ron Pitts
Nielsen ratings: 40.4
Market share: 61
Bottom line: Super Bowl XXVI aired five months after 9/11. Budweiser managed to deliver one of the best commercials ever made to a nation full of people who were still grieving.
"Respect" is a 60-second spot that showed the Budweiser Clydesdales marching from a snowy town to across the Manhattan Bridge, where they bow their heads in front of a skyline where the Twin Towers once stood.
Budweiser only aired the ad in full that one time. A shorter version aired once more on the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks.
Watch Budweiser's "Respect" ad.
2003: Super Bowl XXXVII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $2.1 million
Adjusted for inflation: $2,953,821
Teams: Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Oakland Raiders
Network: ABC
Announcers: Al Michaels, John Madden, Melissa Stark, Lynn Swann
Nielsen ratings: 40.7
Market share: 61
Bottom line: Tom Hanks' "Cast Away" came out in 2000, but it was still fresh on everyone's mind in 2003.
In the film, Hanks tears through a bunch of FedEx packages, looking to find something useful. In the FedEx's Super Bowl commercial, a stranded man knocks on a woman's door. He tells her that he has been stranded for five years and has been holding on to her package for safekeeping.
The twist: Inside was a GPS locator, satellite phone, seeds and a water purifier.
Watch the "Cast Away" FedEx commercial.
2004: Super Bowl XXXVIII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $2.2 million
Adjusted for inflation: $3,014,209
Teams: New England Patriots vs. Carolina Panthers
Network: CBS
Announcers: Greg Gumbel, Phil Simms, Armen Keteyian, Bonnie Bernstein
Nielsen ratings: 41.3
Market share: 63
Bottom line: While all of Super Bowl XXXVIII may have been eclipsed by the Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake "wardrobe malfunction," there were some good commercials, too (and a football game if you're into that kind of thing).
One of the most memorable was a Lays commercial, which featured two elderly people fighting over a dropped bag of potato chips.
Watch old people fight over a bag of Lays.
2005: Super Bowl XXXIX
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $2.3 million
Adjusted for inflation: $3,047,953
Teams: New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Network: Fox
Announcers: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Cris Collinsworth, Pam Oliver, Chris Myers
Nielsen ratings: 41.1
Market share: 62
Bottom line: The Iraq War was in full swing by 2005.
Budweiser sought to pay tribute to American troops and aired a simple commercial of people in an airport applauding soldiers who had just returned home.
Watch the "Welcome Home" commercial.
2006: Super Bowl XL
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $2.5 million
Adjusted for inflation: $3,209,461
Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Seattle Seahawks
Network: ABC
Announcers: Al Michaels, John Madden, Michele Tafoya, Suzy Kolber
Nielsen ratings: 41.6
Market share: 62
Bottom line: By 2006, it would cost $2.5 million to air a 30-second commercial on Super Bowl Sunday.
What better way to fill those 30 seconds (worth about $41,600 each) with a bunch of people just slapping the hell out of one another? Budweiser couldn't think of a better idea for one of its ad slots.
The "Slap" video is stupidly funny.
Check it out.
2007: Super Bowl XLI
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $2.6 million
Adjusted for inflation: $3,245,404
Teams: Indianapolis Colts vs. Chicago Bears
Network: CBS
Announcers: Jim Nantz, Phill Simms, Steve Tasker, Solomon Wilcots, Sam Ryan, Lesley Visser
Nielsen ratings: 42.6
Market share: 64
Bottom line: You probably don't remember Kevin Federline, aka K-Fed. The rapper was once married for two years to Britney Spears, which helped his career (kind of?) and kept him in the limelight during their subsequent divorce. Spears and Federline split in 2006, which gave Nationwide an idea for a commercial.
The insurance company had Federline singing about luxuries and making a rap video for the first 20 seconds, only to have it be revealed that K-Fed was working at a fast-food joint and was singing to the security camera.
"Life comes at you fast," says the narrator.
Watch the "K-Fed VIP" commercial.
2008: Super Bowl XLII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $2.7 million
Adjusted for inflation: $3,245,610
Teams: New York Giants vs. New England Patriots
Network: Fox
Announcers: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Pam Oliver, Chris Myers
Nielsen ratings: 43.3
Market share: 65
Bottom line: In 2007, E-Trade launched its E-Trade Baby campaign. Just in time for the big game.
The E-Trade Baby was a digitally altered baby that was also a financial trader (and talked like one, too). He made for some great ads, and it all started with not one, but two spots at Super Bowl XLII — meaning E-Trade spent $5.4 million.
The E-Trade baby was officially retired in 2014.
Watch the first E-Trade baby commercial.
2009: Super Bowl XLIII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $3 million
Adjusted for inflation: $3,619,109
Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Arizona Cardinals
Network: NBC
Announcers: Al Michaels, John Madden, Andrea Kremer, Alex Flanagan
Nielsen ratings: 42
Market share: 65
Bottom line: The cost of a 30-second commercial broke the $3 million barrier in 2009. The game was brutal for Arizona Cardinals fans, who had to see their team lose by four points, 27-23, with the Steelers taking home their sixth championship.
The Cardinals could probably relate to one of that year's most memorable commercials, which was a car chase spoof by Audi with Jason Statham. The action star went from decade to decade to escape capture from bad guys while driving a luxury vehicle.
Once again, the Steelers got away the ring.
Watch Audi's "The Chase" commercial.
2010: Super Bowl XLIV
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $2.5 million-$2.95 million
Adjusted for inflation: $2,967,253-$3,501,359
Teams: New Orleans Saints vs. Indianapolis Colts
Network: CBS
Announcers: Jim Nantz, Phil Simms, Steve Tasker, Solomon Wilcots
Nielsen ratings: 45
Market share: 68
Bottom line: Commercial costs dipped slightly for Super Bowl XLIV, becoming just a bit cheaper than the previous year's Super Bowl.
This year didn't have any astounding commercials, although it did have an excellent one titled "Parisian Love."
Set entirely on Google's website, the searches and mouse movements tell the story of a person who fell in love with a girl in Paris.
Watch the "Parisian Love" commercial.
2011: Super Bowl XLV
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $3 million
Adjusted for inflation: $3,451,749
Teams: Green Bay Packers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Network: Fox
Announcers: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Pam Oliver, Chris Myers, Mike Pereira
Nielsen ratings: 46
Market share: 69
Bottom line: By 2011, ads cost $3 million for a 30-second ad spot. Chrysler went ahead and spent $12 million for one two-minute-long commercial that was just as much about its new Chrysler 200 as it is about the history and tenacity of Detroit and the American car industry.
Starring Eminem, the ad, "Born of Fire" won numerous awards and is commonly cited as one of the greatest ads of all time.
Watch Chrysler's "Born of Fire" commercial.
2012: Super Bowl XLVI
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $3.5 million
Adjusted for inflation: $3,945,392
Teams: New York Giants vs. New England Patriots
Network: NBC
Announcers: Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, Michele Tafoya
Nielsen ratings: 47.1
Market share: 71
Bottom line: With America still suffering from the aftereffects of the Great Recession, Chrysler continued its get-back-up-again anthem with another two-minute-long commercial.
This time, it was narrated by Clint Eastwood.
"This country can't be knocked out with one punch," says Eastwood. "We get back right back up again and when we do, the world is going to hear the roar of our engines."
Watch Chrysler's "Halftime in America."
2013: Super Bowl XLVII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $4 million
Adjusted for inflation: $4,443,927
Teams: Baltimore Ravens vs. San Francisco 49ers
Network: CBS
Announcers: Jim Nantz, Phil Simms, Steve Tasker, Solomon Wilcots, Mike Carey
Nielsen ratings: 46.3
Market share: 69
Bottom line: Chrysler set the tone of "epic" commercials for the Super Bowl. It continued that tradition into 2013, this time with an ad for Ram Trucks.
The ad used the famous "So God Made a Farmer" speech by radio broadcaster Paul Harvey. The ad used two minutes of Harvey's speech, which was recorded in 1978 at a National FFA Organization and played over striking still images of farmers.
Ram Trucks pledged up to $1 million to the National FFA Organization based on $100,000 for every 1 million views of the commercial on YouTube. That goal was met within five days. Today, the commercial has over 24 million views. At $4 million per 30-seconds of airtime, this commercial cost Ram Trucks $16 million, plus that $1 million donation.
Watch "Farmer" by Ram Trucks.
2014: Super Bowl XLVIII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $4 million
Adjusted for inflation: $4,372,989
Teams: Seattle Seahawks vs. Denver Broncos
Network: Fox
Announcers: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Mike Pereira, Pam Oliver, Erin Andrews
Nielsen ratings: 46.4
Market share: 69
Bottom line: Once the $4 million mark was reached, there was no going back. For three years, Super Bowl commercial costs stayed at the $4 million mark.
So what was one of the best commercials from Super Bowl XLVIII?
We're going to say Budweiser's "Puppy Love," which shows a golden retriever puppy breaking out of its adoption center to go visit one of the Budweiser Clydesdales. And when someone tries to adopt the little guy, the car is stopped by a parade of horses. Silly? Yes. Heartwarming? Also yes.
Watch Budweiser's "Puppy Love" commercial.
2015: Super Bowl XLIX
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $4 million
Adjusted for inflation: $4,367,804
Teams: New England Patriots vs. Seattle Seahawks
Network: Fox
Announcers: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Mike Pereira, Pam Oliver, Erin Andrews
Nielsen ratings: 46.4
Market share: 69
Bottom line: Chrysler came back to the Super Bowl with another epic commercial in 2014. This time, it was less serious.
In "Wisdom," several centenarians impart some warm, practical life advice — until one of Dodge's muscle cars appears and starts tearing up the asphalt. That's when the old-timers start getting real with it.
The reason for the centenarians? Dodge had been around for 100 years.
Watch the "Wisdom" commercial.
2016: Super Bowl 50
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $4.8 million
Adjusted for inflation: $5,176,069
Teams: Denver Broncos vs. Carolina Panthers
Network: CBS
Announcers: Jim Nantz, Phil Simms, Tracy Wolfson, Evan Washburn, Mike Carey
Nielsen ratings: 46.6
Market share: 72
Bottom line: Thirty-second ad rates increased by $800,000 for Super Bowl 50.
We're split between two notable commercials this year. Pepsi had a great one with Janelle Monae, who danced her way through three generations of a Pepsi logo-shaped soundstage.
But it's hard to beat Heinz's "Wiener Stampede," a ridiculous commercial featuring dachshunds wearing hot dog costumes running toward people wearing ketchup and mustard bottle costumes.
Watch Heinz's "Weiner Stampede" and also "The Joy of Pepsi."
2017: Super Bowl LI
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $5.4 million
Adjusted for inflation: $5,701,613
Teams: New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons
Network: Fox
Announcers: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Erin Andrews, Chris Myers, Mike Pereira
Nielsen ratings: 48.8
Market share: N/A
Bottom line: Super Bowl LI took place in a highly politicized year (and it was just the beginning). The ad that encapsulated that time was 84 Lumber's "The Journey," a commercial that centered on a Mexican mother and her daughter making their way to the United States border.
But the ad was deemed too political and was cut short. The end of the commercial told people to visit 84 Lumber's website to see the story conclude (so many people visited the site that it crashed).
At the end, the two are stopped by an enormous wall. But then they see two wide doors made of wood. And enter.
The entire commercial is nearly six minutes long.
Watch the unedited version.
2018: Super Bowl LII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $5 million-$5.2 million
Adjusted for inflation: $5,153,400-$5,359,536
Teams: Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots
Network: NBC
Announcers: Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, Michele Tafoya
Nielsen ratings: 43.1
Market share: 68
Bottom line: Tide aired a brilliant commercial that seemed like it could be just about anything. But what was it? A Tide ad, of course.
"Stranger Things"'s David Harbor did a hilarious job of repeating the line that became an instant meme.
Watch the "It's a Tide Ad" commercial.
2019: Super Bowl LIII
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $5.2 million
Adjusted for inflation: $5,264,151
Teams: New England Patriots vs. Los Angeles Rams
Network: CBS
Announcers: Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Tracy Wolfson, Evan Washburn, Jay Feely, Gene Steratore
Nielsen ratings: 41.1
Market share: N/A
Bottom line: With Super Bowl commercials now costing over $5 million per 30-second ad slot, most companies choose to spend millions in production costs.
But not Burger King. At least not in 2019.
The fast-food chain simply reissued 45 seconds of old footage showing Andy Warhol eating a Whopper. Then they slapped an #EatLikeAndy hashtag over it. It worked.
Watch Andy Warhol eat a Whopper.
2020: Super Bowl LIV
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $5.6 million
Adjusted for inflation: N/A
Teams: Kansas City Chiefs vs. San Francisco 49eers
Network: Fox
Announcers: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Erin Andrews, Chris Myers, Mike Pereira
Nielsen ratings: 41.6
Bottom line: At the cost of $5.6 million, the 2020 Super Bowl commercials are still the most expensive to date, beating out 2021's commercial costs by $100,000.
The most memorable commercial of Super Bowl LIV was Google's "Loretta," which tells the story of an elderly man using Google Assistant to remember his late wife.
"Loretta" was inspired by a real person, an 85-year-old grandfather of a Google employee. His voice is the one you hear in the commercial.
Watch Google's "Loretta" commercial, and try not to cry.
2021: Super Bowl LV
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Cost of 30-second commercial: $5.5 million
Adjusted for inflation: N/A
Teams: Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Network: CBS
Announcers: Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Tracy Wolfson, Evan Washburn, Jay Feely, Gene Steratore
Nielsen ratings: TBD
Bottom line: The Super Bowl remains one of the most-watched sporting events in the world, and the game in 2021 presents a unique opportunity for companies to make a statement after an unprecedented year of challenges.
Veterans brands are expected to be there, along with any other businesses that can shell out the $5.5 million for 30 seconds of air time.
Chipotle is running its first Super Bowl ad this year in a commercial called "Can a Burrito Change the World?" It's a good question to ask this year. Stay tuned for the answer.
Watch the Chipotle commercial.
Related:Best Super Super Bowl Commercials of All Time l Best Football Food