What Was The First Commercial For The Super Bowl

The First Super Bowl Commercial

The first Super Bowl was played in 1967, and while the game itself was a modest affair compared to today's spectacle, something quietly revolutionary happened during the broadcast that would eventually reshape American advertising forever. A handful of companies took out ads during that original game, but one commercial in particular stands out not for its polish or budget, but for the simple fact that it existed at all.

Back then, a 30-second spot cost about $40. Day to day, that's it. And companies weren't yet bidding wars over airtime, and the idea of Super Bowl commercials becoming cultural events was still years away. But among the early advertisers was a brand that understood something the others might have missed — that this game, this broadcast, was going to become something bigger than football.

What Actually Aired During Super Bowl I

The first Super Bowl, officially known as the AFL-NFL World Championship Game, took place on January 15, 1967, at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The Green Bay Packers faced off against the Kansas City Chiefs, and while the game drew a decent television audience, it was hardly the massive phenomenon it would become. Still, several advertisers saw potential.

Among the commercials that aired that day, one from a then-relatively unknown company called Frito-Lay made history. In practice, unlike today's Super Bowl ads, which are dissected frame by frame and released online before kickoff, these early commercials weren't preserved with any real care. They ran an ad for their product, but here's the thing — the exact details of what that commercial looked like, what it said, or even what specific product it was promoting have been lost to time. They aired once, and that was that.

What we do know is that Frito-Lay's ad was among the earliest attempts by a major brand to associate itself with what was still a fairly new concept — professional football on a national stage. The company reportedly paid around $40 for their 30-second spot, which seems almost absurd when you consider that a single commercial during Super Bowl LVI in 2022 reportedly cost over $6 million.

Why This Moment Matters More Than It Seems

You might think that a 30-second ad from 1967, the details of which are mostly forgotten, couldn't possibly matter much. But here's what most people miss — that first commercial wasn't just advertising a snack. It was planting a seed. It was the beginning of the idea that the Super Bowl wasn't just about the game, but about everything that happened around it.

For decades, the Super Bowl was primarily a football game. This leads to the commercials were secondary, almost an afterthought. But as television became more central to American life, and as the Super Bowl grew into the cultural juggernaut it is today, those early advertisers started to look prescient. They had recognized something that others hadn't yet — that the Super Bowl wasn't just a game, it was a shared national experience.

This shift didn't happen overnight. It took years for the idea of "Super Bowl commercials" to become a thing in its own right. But once it did, everything changed. Suddenly, companies weren't just buying ad time — they were buying into a cultural moment. And that first commercial, whatever it actually looked like, was the first step down that path.

How the Super Bowl Ad Ecosystem Evolved

The Early Years: Cheap Airtime, Limited Ambition

For the first decade or so after that 1967 game, Super Bowl commercials remained relatively unremarkable. The cost of advertising was still low, and most companies treated the Super Bowl like any other television broadcast. Ads were straightforward, product-focused, and rarely memorable beyond the game itself.

The Game-Changing Shift: Ads Become Entertainment

Everything started to change in the 1980s and 1990s. Because of that, simply showing a product wasn't enough anymore — the ad had to be an event. As the cost of Super Bowl advertising began to climb, companies realized they needed to justify the expense. This is when we started seeing the elaborate, cinematic commercials that people now eagerly anticipate each year.

Apple's famous "1984" commercial, which aired during Super Bowl XVIII, is often cited as the turning point. It was expensive, creative, and most importantly, it proved that a Super Bowl ad could generate more buzz than the game itself. Suddenly, companies weren't just advertising during the Super Bowl — they were competing for attention with the game.

The Modern Era: A Cultural Phenomenon

Today, Super Bowl commercials are released online days or even weeks before the game. They're discussed, debated, and ranked. Companies spend millions not just on the ad itself, but on the marketing campaign surrounding it. The ads have become so important that some companies release multiple versions, conduct focus groups, and even hire Hollywood directors to helm their spots.

What Most People Get Wrong About Super Bowl Advertising History

There's a common misconception that the first Super Bowl commercial was some grand, revolutionary moment that everyone recognized at the time. In reality, it was pretty mundane. Most people watching that 1967 game probably didn't give the ads much thought at all.

Another myth is that there was just one commercial that first aired during the Super Bowl. In fact, several companies bought time during that original broadcast. The Frito-Lay ad is the one that's most frequently cited today, but it wasn't the only one.

And here's something that surprises a lot of people — the exact details of that first commercial are genuinely unclear. And we know Frito-Lay ran an ad, and we know roughly how much it cost, but we don't have a clear record of what it actually showed. Day to day, this might seem like a small thing, but it speaks to how different the media landscape was back then. These commercials weren't treated as cultural artifacts worth preserving.

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What Actually Worked: Lessons from the Beginning

Looking back at that first commercial, and the early years of Super Bowl advertising in general, a few key lessons emerge. So naturally, first, timing matters. Being early to the Super Bowl advertising game gave those initial advertisers a kind of exclusivity that later advertisers could never quite recapture.

Second, simplicity often works better than complexity. And those early commercials were straightforward — they showed a product and maybe made a simple claim. There was no need for elaborate storylines or celebrity endorsements because the novelty of advertising during the Super Bowl was enough.

Finally, consistency pays off. Which means companies that stuck with Super Bowl advertising through the years, even when it wasn't yet a cultural phenomenon, were the ones who benefited the most when it became one. They built familiarity and trust with audiences who grew up expecting to see their ads every February.

FAQ

What was the very first commercial to air during the Super Bowl?

The first commercials aired during Super Bowl I in 1967, with several companies purchasing ad time. Among the most notable was an ad from Frito-Lay, though the exact details of what it showed have been lost to time.

How much did the first Super Bowl commercial cost?

Reports indicate that a 30-second spot during the first Super Bowl cost around $40. This is a stark contrast to modern Super Bowl advertising, where a 30-second spot can cost millions of dollars.

Were Super Bowl commercials popular when they first started?

No, the first Super Bowl commercials were relatively unremarkable and treated as standard television advertising. They didn't become cultural events until decades later.

Which company is credited with revolutionizing Super Bowl commercials?

Apple's "1984" commercial, which aired during Super Bowl XVIII in 1984, is widely considered the turning point that elevated Super Bowl advertising from simple product promotion to entertainment.

Are the original Super Bowl I commercials available to watch today?

Unfortunately, most of the original commercials from Super Bowl I have not been preserved. Unlike today's ads, which are released online and archived, these early commercials were treated as disposable content.

The Accidental Revolution

It's strange to think that something as simple as a 30-second snack ad could set in motion a chain of events that would eventually lead to multi-million-dollar advertising spectacles. But that's exactly what happened. Those early advertisers, with their $40 commercials and modest ambitions, unknowingly laid the groundwork for what would become one of the most anticipated aspects of American popular culture.

The first Super Bowl commercial wasn't revolutionary because of what it showed or how it was made. It

It was revolutionary because it opened a new platform for brands to reach a massive, unified audience at a moment when television itself was still finding its footing. Those early advertisers discovered that buying time during a championship game gave them something no other medium could: a nationally synchronized stage where a product could become part of a shared experience. The novelty of appearing on a live sporting event meant that even a simple, well‑executed spot could generate disproportionate buzz, turning a modest purchase into a cultural footnote that would be remembered long after the game ended.

As the decades passed, the template laid down in 1967 was gradually refined. Even so, companies that stuck with the medium—maintaining a consistent presence even when the Super Bowl was still a niche event—built a reservoir of familiarity. When the broadcast’s popularity surged, those same brands reaped the rewards of audience trust, turning their ads from mere promotions into anticipated moments. The early emphasis on simplicity gave way to more elaborate storytelling, but the core principle remained: a clear, memorable hook that could stand on its own before the game even began.

The watershed moment arrived with Apple’s “1984” commercial, a bold departure from the straightforward product demos of the past. This sparked a cascade of ever‑more ambitious productions, as brands scrambled to out‑do each other with celebrity cameos, high‑budget spectacles, and viral moments. By framing a technological manifesto as a cinematic narrative, Apple demonstrated that Super Bowl ads could double as cultural statements. The $40 ad of 1967 had become a $7 million+ showcase, yet the underlying lesson persisted: an ad that resonates emotionally and memorably will outlive its airtime.

Today, the Super Bowl commercial is less a mere advertisement and more a multimedia event, dissected on social feeds, analyzed in think pieces, and archived for posterity. The accidental revolution that began with a $40 snack spot has morphed into a multi‑billion‑dollar industry, yet its origins remain a testament to the power of timing, consistency, and the simple idea that a 30‑second window can change the way a nation thinks about a brand.

In the end, the Super Bowl commercial’s evolution mirrors the broader shift in advertising itself—from transactional messaging to storytelling that shapes culture. What started as a modest gamble by a few forward‑thinking companies has become a defining feature of American popular culture, proving that sometimes the most profound impacts arise from the simplest of beginnings.