Overtime in the Super Bowl was exciting for football fans, and profitable for CBS.
With the game lasting almost a full extra quarter because of overtime, CBS aired 10 more commercials that advertisers paid an estimated $60 million for, according to Anthony Crupi of Sportico.com.
The media buying agency GroupM said it had discussions with CBS before the game but didn’t officially secure overtime commercial spots for three of its clients (Discover card and the movie trailers for Monkey Man and Kung Fu Panda 4) until the fourth quarter.
Advertisers have commercials at the ready so they know they can move fast when an opportunity arises. Discover’s overtime commercial with Jennifer Coolidge had aired during the pregame show. State Farm’s Arnold Schwarzenegger ad and Verizon’s Beyoncé ad that ran during regulation both re-ran during overtime, with the advertisers agreeing to pay CBS for another spot when more spots became available.
Between regulation time and overtime, CBS brought in nearly $700 million in commercial sales for Super Bowl LVIII.
