No more ‘Crypto Bowl’: Why you won’t see crypto Super Bowl commercials this year
It felt like the breaks between actions at Super Bowl 56 would be incomplete without at least one cryptocurrency commercial.
Various cryptocurrency companies flitted left and right during the Super Bowl commercial promoting the then-burgeoning investment. The barrage of commercials calling this year’s game “The Crypto Bowl.”
Matt Damon, LeBron James, Kyle Lowry, Larry David and other well-known celebrities have appeared on millions of TV screens encouraging viewers to invest in crypto as the wave of the future and telling them how everyone would be joining the trend. Four companies were at the top: FTX, Coinbase, Crypto.com and eToro.
That will not be the case in 2023. Not only will there be fewer crypto ads this year than in last year’s ad blitz, there will be none. Why will that be? Here’s what you need to know about this year’s lack of crypto promotion.
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Why You Won’t See Crypto Super Bowl Ads
Cryptocurrency is in bad shape. Lawsuits have been filed against companies and spokespersons, one of the major crypto companies has gone under, and share prices in bitcoin and other currencies have fallen sharply for a year.
FTX filed for bankruptcy back in November, and a month later founder Sam Bankman-Fried was charged with fraud, money laundering and campaign financing, according to the Justice Department. When the news broke, several of the faces in these 2022 commercials were facing class action lawsuits for being involved as brand ambassadors for the doomed cryptocurrency companies.
Mark Evans, Fox’s executive vice president of ad sales, told the Associated Press that in November there were two crypto companies that were “booked and done,” and two more “on the one-yard line,” but as of FTX went under and Bankman-Fried was indicted, the deals didn’t go through.
“There’s absolutely no representation in that category that day,” Evans told the AP.
According to ESPN, Crypto.com spent $36.5 million on Super Bowl 56 ads alone, FTX lost $36.7 million, Coinbase used $31.6 million, and eToro spent $7.2 million dollars out.
Earlier this year, Coinbase and eToro confirmed to ESPN that they would not have advertising during the big game, while Crypto.com did not respond to a request for comment.
That doesn’t mean crypto ads are gone forever. As ESPN noted, the markets have been up and down, and there are possible indications for cryptocurrency
“Sometimes it’s just better to stop talking and let the industry sort itself out, calm down, stabilize the market and then come back when you have a better story to tell,” said Peter Daboll, Chief Strategy and Insights iSpot officer, to ESPN.