Advertisers still can’t get enough of football.
NBCUniversal, which has the rights to next February’s Super Bowl, has entirely sold out ad inventory during the big game, it announced Wednesday, a day before the start of the NFL regular season.
Beyond that, the media company said that 90% of its non-Super Bowl NFL inventory for this season, which includes the 20th consecutive season of Sunday Night Football on NBC, is also accounted for.
In terms of the Super Bowl, CPG, entertainment, finance, and alcohol brands continue to be the top categories, the company noted in a press release, while pharma, entertainment, and QSR brands are all increasing NFL spend. There are more than 150 partners signed onto this season’s SNF, nearly 40 of which are newcomers.
Advertisers are also increasingly eyeing digital Super Bowl opportunities. NBCU, which will stream the Big Game on Peacock, clocked a 20% increase in digital investments compared to the last Super Bowl that it had the rights to in 2022.
All in all, this NFL season is already NBCU’s “highest grossing to date,” according to Peter Lazarus, EVP, NBC Sports and Olympics, advertising and partnerships.
“Coming off of the strongest sports upfront in our company’s history, Super Bowl LX has generated extraordinary interest from brands and allowed us to sell out of our ad inventory earlier than ever,” Lazarus said in the press release. “With a monumental year ahead, we are proud of the incredible momentum thus far and are excited to offer both fans and brands an unrivaled slate of sports programming starting with NFL kickoff.”
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Through the uprights: The announcement was a long time coming. In June, Variety reported that NBCU’s Super Bowl inventory was approaching a sell-out, and Super Bowl ad inventory seems to get snatched up faster every year as advertisers scramble to lock in pricey ad inventory that’s largely seen as one of the few remaining ways in media to reach huge audiences.
Still, September is particularly early for a sell-out. Fox, which had the rights to this year’s Super Bowl, announced last November it was mostly sold out of Super Bowl ad inventory, although it hung onto a bit more inventory before announcing a complete sell-out a few weeks before the game.
Prices for Super Bowl ads also continue to be sky-high. Peak prices for Fox’s game exceeded $7 million for a 30-second spot, with some spots right before the game going for as high as $8 million; NBCU has sought similar pricing, according to Variety.