At this time last year, marketers expected the Super Bowl to be even more important than usual for 2022 as live events like the Golden Globes and the Grammys had been off the air or postponed. That’s not the case this year, as the Golden Globes returned to NBC last week (with ratings reportedly down roughly 26% from when it last aired in 2021) and the Grammys slated for Feb. 5.

Even so, marketers and agency execs say that the importance of the Super Bowl remains high as it is one of the few events where consumers are tuning in live and actually paying attention to the ads. That attention – harder and harder to come by – is why marketers are still willing to shell out up to $7 million for a 30-second spot on Super Bowl LVII on Fox on Feb. 12, despite the economic downturn.

That’s not to say all brands are ready to pony up that kind of cash — some like Toyota and Carmax, among others, are sitting out this year’s game. As for categories, “movies and streamers are the category that is up the most,” said Jon Lefferts, evp of integrated investments at UM.

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