Consumers are brushing off their concerns about high food prices to celebrate Super Bowl LIX, while food and beverage brands once again roll out star-studded marketing campaigns and activations to boost their brand sales following the big game.
Most consumers (67%) said that inflation is not going to impact how much they plan to spend on food for the Super Bowl, according to a survey of 1,089 US shoppers conducted by omnichannel marketing company Advantage Solutions.
Super Bowl revelers plan to spend up to $250 on foods and beverages for game day, while 17% and 16% of shoppers will spend $51-$100 and $201-$250, respectively, according to the survey. Additionally, 16% of shoppers said that they plan to spend less than $50 on foods and beverages for the Super Bowl, and a separate 16% budgeted $101-$150.
However, consumers are saving money by buying less expensive private-label products and shopping on sale. Nearly a fourth (22%) of shoppers said that they are buying both private label and name brand items, while the same percentage opt for a mix of private label and on-sale items.
Most consumers (73%) plan to shop at mass stores, like Walmart and Target, while 16% and 7% said they primarily will use grocery stores and online channels, like Amazon and Instacart, respectively.
Game day staples, like pizzas and wings, remain red hot
Super Bowl hosts say game day staples, like pizza, chips and dips and chicken wings, remain the most popular, with 73%, 69%, and 54% of consumers, respectively, saying they are must-haves, according to Advantage Solutions. Additionally, 58%, 53%, 49% and 47% said sandwiches, cookies, nachos and mozzarella sticks, respectively, are must-haves for a party.
Last year, snack sales for Super Bowl week increased 14.9% from the prior week to hit $670 million, according to Circana data commission by SNAC International.
Chips sales accounted for 52.7% of all snack sales during Super Bowl Week 2024, with potato chips and tortilla and tostada chips bringing in $180.6 million and $172.2 million, respectively. Additionally, cheese snacks, corn snacks and pretzels rounded out the top five snack categories with sales of $58.6 million, $43.2 million and $42.6 million, respectively.
Many brands expect a boost in sales the week after the Super Bowl. Last year, brands that promoted during the Super Bowl saw a 16.4% increase in demand, compared to a control group that did not promote with a 0.5% decrease, according to data from market research firm Veylinx.
From Chiefs-branded nuggets to PepsiCo’s seafood boil competition
CPG brands will use Super Bowl week to promote their brands with marketing campaigns, unique products and partnerships.
Some of this year’s activities, launches and campaigns include:
- Pepsi taps into regional New Orleans cuisine with activation: Pepsi will celebrate the company’s first Pepsi Super Bowl Boil competition in New Orleans, and Pepsi NOLA Eats Fest to show “how Pepsi enhances the flavor of the city’s most crave-worthy dishes,” the company shared. Consumers can vote for their favorite seafood boil spot online, and additional activations will happen on Friday and Saturday before the game.
- Tyson Foods release co-branded Chiefs nuggets: Chicken company Tyson Foods is throwing its support to the four-time Super Bowl winners the Kansas City Chiefs with nuggets shaped in the Chiefs arrowhead logo. The all-white meat chicken nuggets are available at select retailers, including Hy-Vee in the Kansas City area.
- General Mills return to Super Bowl with Totino’s Pizza Rolls: General Mills will return to the Super Bowl for the first time in over a decade to promote Totino’s Pizza Rolls. This marketing campaign follows the success of its “Big Pizza” campaign during the 2024 NFL season which helped Totino’s achieve the “second highest sales month in Totino’s 30-year history,” the company shared.
- Finish and Truff team up with new hot honey bacon cheddar dip: Hot sauce brand Truff partnered with dishwasher detergent brand Finish to release a honey bacon cheddar dip. The companies supported the launch with a tailgate tasting at Denver’s Mile High Stadium earlier this month.
- DoorDash tells consumers to crack the code to win: DoorDash will use its airtime on Super Bowl Sunday for a sweepstake, where one winner can win items advertised throughout the competition, including snacks, desserts, cars, self-care products and tax service, by cracking a secret code. This marketing campaign is designed to showcase the depth of DoorDash’s retail network, which include 2 million products, the company stated.
