Amidst a challenging and uneasy period for America, marked by falling consumer confidence, social outrage, and harsh winter weather, Super Bowl advertisers in 2025 adopted a strategy aimed at offering respite, encouraging self-care, and eliciting smiles. This collective trauma and widespread stress made the Super Bowl ads a much-needed shared moment, allowing viewers to simply be human and enjoy themselves, as noted by Vann Graves of the Brandcenter at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Many commercials emphasized themes of care and community. Ring showcased how doorbell cameras can assist neighbors in finding lost pets, while a Budweiser Clydesdale was depicted protecting a bald eagle chick from the rain. Health-focused messages included Novartis touting a blood test for prostate cancer and Toyota reminding viewers about seatbelt safety. The iconic Mister Rogers was invoked twice, with Lady Gaga singing his classic “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” for Rocket Companies, and the National Football League using “You Are Special” to promote its youth sports initiatives.

Beyond heartfelt messages, a significant portion of this year's commercials embraced silliness and humor. Sabrina Carpenter attempted to construct the perfect man from Pringles, while Benson Boone and Ben Stiller performed as a disco duo for Instacart. Andy Samberg, in character as “Meal Diamond,” humorously squirted Hellmann’s mayonnaise on deli customers' sandwiches. Even traditional rivalries were spoofed, as Coca-Cola’s polar bear mascots shared a Pepsi in an ad, playing on last year’s viral kiss cam. Adrien Brody delivered an over-the-top performance for TurboTax, adding to the lighthearted tone.

Delivery services also engaged in a battle for attention with star-studded campaigns. George Clooney appeared in a Grubhub advertisement promoting free delivery on orders over $50. Uber Eats enlisted Matthew McConaughey to comically convince Bradley Cooper and Parker Posey that football is a conspiracy designed to make people hungry. Meanwhile, Rapper 50 Cent playfully trolled Sean “Diddy” Combs in a DoorDash commercial.

Artificial intelligence (AI) emerged as a prominent theme across Super Bowl airwaves. Oakley Meta showcased its AI-enabled glasses in action-packed spots featuring Spike Lee and Marshawn Lynch using them to film and answer questions. Wix debuted an ad for Wix Harmony, highlighting its AI tools for website design. Svedka Vodka collaborated with AI studio Silverside AI to create an ad featuring its robot mascot FemBot dancing alongside BroBot. However, AI ads were not without controversy. AI developer Anthropic aired commercials asserting that its chatbot Claude does not have ads, a point OpenAI CEO Sam Altman took issue with, as OpenAI announced plans to test ads for ChatGPT. Amazon also stirred debate with an ad starring Chris Hemsworth that humorously addressed fears of AI, running just days after the company laid off 16,000 corporate workers, some of whom might be replaced by AI. Clinical professor of marketing Tim Calkins noted that while intended to be funny, such an ad could reinforce genuine concerns about AI.

Despite the prevalence of health and tech themes, Super Bowl ads continued to celebrate snacks. Bowen Yang, Scarlett Johansson, and Jon Hamm collaborated to pitch Ritz crackers, and Lay’s presented a heartfelt ad about a retiring potato farmer. Simultaneously, a strong focus on health initiatives was evident. Octavia Spencer and Sofia Vergara urged kidney disease testing for Boehringer Ingelheim, and Mike Tyson shared his sister’s death from obesity while advocating for real, unprocessed food in an ad paid for by MAHA Center Inc., a nonprofit allied with U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

GLP-1 weight loss drugs notably entered the advertising landscape. Novo Nordisk promoted its new Wegovy pills with a roster of celebrities including Kenan Thompson, DJ Khaled, Danielle Brooks, Ana Gasteyer, John C. Reilly, and Danny Trejo. Telehealth firm Ro also pitched its GLP-1 offerings with Serena Williams, and Hims & Hers, having recently introduced its own GLP-1 pill, highlighted its commitment to providing better healthcare access for everyone, not just the wealthy.

Nostalgia proved to be another effective strategy to uplift American spirits by evoking warm memories of the past. T-Mobile featured the Backstreet Boys performing a version of their 1999 hit “I Want It That Way.” Volkswagen transported viewers back to 1992 with a commercial set to House of Pain’s “Jump Around.” Xfinity delivered a tongue-in-cheek reimagining of 1993’s “Jurassic Park,” reuniting Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum to show Xfinity restoring power to the island, preventing potential mishaps.

Advertisers flock to the Super Bowl each year due to its massive, unified audience. In 2025, a record 127.7 million U.S. viewers tuned into the game across television and streaming platforms. Jura Liaukonyte, a marketing professor at Cornell University, explained that companies pay a premium for Super Bowl spots to reach an audience that would otherwise be fragmented across various broadcast and streaming platforms. This year’s Super Bowl ads commanded an average of $8 million per 30-second unit, with some spots selling for a record $10 million-plus, according to Peter Lazarus of NBC Sports. Lazarus dubbed February, encompassing the Super Bowl, the Olympics, and the NBA All-Star Game, a “legendary February.”