Caesars Sportsbook will make its Super Bowl commercial debut

Caesars Sportsbook will make its Super Bowl debut later this month as the sports betting industry looks to finally make its mark on the biggest advertising night of the year. The brand said it will air a 30-second spot during the second quarter, featuring actor and comedian J.B. Smoove playing Julius Caesar; actress Halle Berry as Caesar’s lover, Cleopatra; as well as Eli, Peyton, Archie and Cooper Manning playing themselves. All six have appeared in prior ads for the sportsbook, which launched in August, nearly a year after Caesars Entertainment acquired bookmaker William Hill for $3.7 billion. Subscribe to Ad Age now for the latest industry news and analysis. The spot was filmed at the Caesars Palace hotel and put together by agency Ten6 and production company Imperial Woodpecker. Similar to previous ads from the sportsbook, the Super Bowl spot will be centered around treating would-be bettors like royalty, or "Caesars," Chief Marketing Officer Sharon Otterman told Ad Age. The sportsbook joins rival DraftKings as the only two confirmed sportsbooks to be airing national in-game spots. DraftKings will air a 30-second ad as well. Unlike some betting brands, Otterman told Ad Age that Caesars wouldn’t air a pregame spot because “our goal for Super Bowl isn’t that pregame acquisition.” “We have entertainment in our name, and we’re going to approach the Super Bowl like any major brand would,” Otterman said. She added that social activations would be geared toward customer acquisition. RSVP for Ad Age’s Super Bowl event on Feb. 8 at AdAge.com/InDepthSuperBowl. Although DraftKings was featured in last year’s game with two straightforward 15-second ads that highlighted its in-game betting options, this year’s Super Bowl culminates a season in which the NFL has embraced sports betting more than ever before. “We’ve been somewhat restricted” in the past, Otterman said, referring to the league’s hesitancy with regard to sports gambling. But that all changed in April when, three years after the Supreme Court struck down a federal ban on sports gambling, the NFL announced Caesars, DraftKings and FanDuel as its official sports betting partners. As part of the agreement, the league agreed to allow up to six sports betting commercials per game. Caesars has spent $73.1 million on NFL ads, leading all sports brands, according to iSpot. FanDuel, which launched its sportsbook in 2019, ranked second in 2021 at $47.3 million. A 30-second spot in this year's Super Bowl on NBC cost as much as $7 million. Related: Gambling boom leads to NFL sponsorship sales surge Caesars will also air an in-game ad in select local markets—its sportsbook is fully operational in 12 states—in which Eli, Peyton and Archie Manning will talk straight into the camera about responsible gambling. Caesars already has an ad of this sort playing in select markets, although it’s unclear whether the same spot will appear Feb. 13. It's "important as a leader to get the message out that day,” Otterman said of the ad. In addition to the Super Bowl spot, Otterman said that the brand would also air an ad during the Puppy Bowl, which airs hours before the Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals. (You cannot legally bet on the Puppy Bowl.) Subscribe to Ad Age now for the latest industry news and analysis.

Caesars Sportsbook will make its Super Bowl commercial debut

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