Paramount Scores Largest Super Bowl Sales Ever, But Not Because of Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift's effect on the NFL has been an advertising Love Story, but the singer didn't have much impact on Paramount's record-setting Super Bowl 58 ad sales. Though the company hasn't announced its sales total, ADWEEK has learned that Paramount has surpassed Fox's ad sales revenue from last year of around $600 million for the game, and the company is set for the largest Super Bowl day in history, according to a source familiar with the matter. Sorry to the Swifties, but there's virtually no correlation between the sales and Taylor Swift potentially being at the Super Bowl. However, that's because the company was sold out of commercials in November, long before the Kansas City Chiefs—and Swift's boyfriend Travis Kelce—locked in their opportunity to face the San Fransisco 49ers in the Super Bowl. Here Are 3 Ways to Watch Super Bowl 58 In November, the company announced that it was "virtually" sold out of ads. It was, in fact, sold out, but a couple of advertisers dropped out for various reasons and had to be replaced. The company looked for between $6.5 million to $7 million for 30-second spots, which included placements on CBS, Paramount+ and Nickelodeon. And though brands had the option to change creative between ads shown on CBS and those on Nickelodeon, the commercials will generally be the same between the networks. Of course, some advertisers, such as beer brands and sportsbooks, couldn't have spots on Nickelodeon's alternate telecast, meaning there were some Nickelodeon-specific spots available, but those were also sold out well in advance of the game. Overall, there are expected to be around 70 ad slots during the game, with the majority being 30s, though there are a number of 60s as well. In terms of categories and brands, Super Bowl 58 is bringing a broad mix. For instance, despite the 2023 United Auto Workers strike, auto remains well represented with advertisers such as Kia, VW and Toyota; telecom companies and candy manufacturers have several units; and there will also be several returning staples, with Anheuser-Busch and PepsiCo having multiple units. Though there aren't necessarily long-form 120-second ads like Super Bowls of yesteryear, movie fans can also expect some trailers to make appearances. Biggest Big Game ever? Unlike in previous Super Bowls when advertiser positions would change last-minute ahead of the game, the brand commercial positions are locked, thanks to the marketplace moving quickly. Though there is no definitive reason for the quick-moving market, the continually growing NFL ratings amid increasing viewership fragmentation may have something to do with it. NFL viewership has seen robust growth in 2023-2024, with the first three weekends of the postseason averaging 38.5 million viewers, a 9% year-over-year increase. In addition, the Chiefs’ win over the Baltimore Ravens pulled in 55.47 million viewers, making it the most-watched AFC Championship game and Paramount+’s most-streamed live event, according to the company. With that growth, this year's game could be on track to become the most-viewed Super Bowl. And though Swift didn't have much of an effect on ad sales, she could have something to do with that. And Paramount knows it... all too well. Why the ‘Taylor Swift Effect’ Is an NFL Advertiser’s Wildest Dream For the latest Super Bowl 58 advertising news—who’s in, who’s out, teasers, full ads and more—check out Adweek’s Super Bowl 2024 Ad Tracker and the rest of our stories here. And join us on the evening of Feb. 11 for the best in-game coverage of the commercials.