Streaming Overtakes Linear Audience in Super Bowl LX

An average of 131.7M viewers tuned in as the Seattle Seahawks defeated the New England Patriots 29–13 in a defense-heavy Super Bowl.   The win marked long-awaited revenge for Seattle following the infamous goal-line interception in Super Bowl XLIX, while Sam Darnold’s comeback story culminated in leading the Seahawks to a championship. Average viewership was down   4% compared to last year's Super Bowl, which saw a record 137M average viewers.   The game's audience peaked shortly before halftime, and gradually  declined throughout the rest of the game as the Patriots offense continually stalled.

A historic shift took place  in this Super Bowl's viewership. For the first time in history, those tuning in on linear did not make up a majority of the audience.  NBC's Peacock and various CTV platforms made up 40% of Super Bowl LX's audience, while  Youtube and Youtube TV made up 16% of the audience.  

While markets   in Washington and neighboring states stayed tuned in throughout the game, New England markets tuned out as the Patriots' hopes of a seventh Super Bowl ring dwindled. 

AI Ads Takes the Field

AI took center stage in Super Bowl advertising this year. AdImpact tracked 13  AI-related commercials that aired nationally during the game, spanning 11 advertisers:  OpenAI, Anthropic, Amazon, Google, Meta, GenSpark, AI.com, Microsoft, Wix, Base44, and Ring. Additionally, Svedka made history by airing the first-ever fully AI- generated Super Bowl commercial.  Notably, auto companies mostly skipped this year's  Super Bowl, with Toyota  being the only automaker to air an ad during the game. Just two years ago, we saw four auto companies air an ad during the Super Bowl LVIII.   Here's our quarter-by-quarter recap of notable ads:

The game opened with 118M viewers as Seattle received the opening kickoff. The first post-kickoff ad break featured spots from State Farm, DraftKings, and Toyota, along with the night’s first AI-focused ads from GenSpark and Microsoft Copilot. After a Seahawks field goal and a stalled Patriots drive, a beer-heavy ad break followed. Highlights included a teaser for the upcoming Mandalorian & Grogu film parodying Budweiser’s iconic Clydesdales, followed by a Michelob Ultra spot. AI was the focus on the remaining ad breaks in the first quarter.  Meta and Oakley unveiled their "Athletic Intelligence" glasses, an OpenAI spot highlighting real-world use cases, and an Anthropic ad poked  fun at competing AI platforms that accept advertising.

The second quarter began with the score still 3–0. A 29-yard run by Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker set up another Seahawks field goal, extending the lead to 6–0. The first ad break of the quarter delivered one of the night’s biggest surprises: Pepsi’s polar bear choosing Pepsi over Coke. In what would be the first of two ads featuring The Backstreet Boys, T-Mobile's Big Game spot asked "Tell me  why". Following a Patriots three-and-out, the next break featured a trailer for the upcoming Super Mario Galaxy movie, an Uber Eats ad continuing its “is football just an excuse to sell food?” theme, and a Bosch spot starring a newly understated Guy Fieri. After the two-minute warning, the Backstreet Boys reappeared, this time in the night’s first crypto ad for Coinbase. Dunkin’ continued its Super Bowl tradition with another DunKings installment, featuring characters from Seinfeld, Friends, and Cheers,  along with a cameo from Tom Brady.

AI dominated the ad breaks surrounding Bad Bunny’s record-breaking halftime show as 152M were tuned in. GenSpark and Meta aired additional spots highlighting their AI offerings, while Svedka made history with the first fully AI-generated Super Bowl commercial. As brands like Coca-Cola have already experimented with AI-generated creative in holiday campaigns, this raises questions about how extensively AI tools may shape future Super Bowl advertising. Other notable ads during this window included spots from MAHA Center Inc. featuring Mike Tyson, Fanatics Sportsbook, and Bud Light.

The Patriots opened the second half trailing 9–0, but after another quick three-and-out and a Seahawks drive that resulted in a field goal, the third quarter’s ad breaks leaned heavily on nostalgia. Viewers saw a de-aged Jurassic Park cast reunite in an Xfinity commercial, the return of the Budweiser Clydesdales, and celebrities sharing their favorite Pokémon in The Pokémon Company’s first-ever Super Bowl ad. AI quickly reentered the spotlight with a Google Gemini commercial, the first AI-focused ad of the second half.

The first touchdown of the game happened a few minutes into the fourth quarter as Darnold connected on a pass to AJ Barner in the end zone. Drake Maye and the Patriots quickly responded with their first touchdown, bringing the score to 19-7.  After a quick three-and-out from the Seahawks, the Patriots now had a chance to turn this into a one-possession game. A promising start to a drive collapsed when Maye threw an interception, ending the Patriots' hopes of winning a seventh Super Bowl ring.  The fourth quarter brought us some of the final AI ads of the night from AI.com, Base44, and a tongue-in-cheek ad starring Chris Hemsworth from Amazon.   With the final score  at 29-13, the Seahawks won their franchise's second Super Bowl.

With much of the Big Game unfolding as a slow, defensive battle, it was advertisers who delivered many of the night’s biggest moments. Super Bowl ad trends often come and go—crypto and sports betting dominated recent years but were notably scarce this time around. With AI-focused ads emerging as the clear star of the night, the question now is whether AI will break the mold and become a lasting fixture of Super Bowl advertising.

Stay tuned  for further Super Bowl ad analysis from AdImpact. Join the conversation on LinkedIn and stay up to date with every Super Bowl ad insight we share.