Commercials Finding Way Into Super Bowl Betting Odds

NFL News - February 5th, 2010 - Written by John Ritter

While it could turn out to be one of the most memorable Super Bowls in history, the all-day event has become a cultural phenomenon because of the commercials.

It has become unlike any event because their are really no breaks in the viewing experience. The game has produced some of the most memorable ads like the "1984" commercial by Apple, "Nothing But Net" by McDonald's and "Mean Joe Green" by Coca-Cola.

The Super Bowl is becoming so big that even the government is wanting in on the action. On Friday, it was announced that the census bureau is gobbling up $2.5 million in ad space during the NFL Championship in hopes of increasing awareness improving the public's participation in the most recent census.

While many in Washington have debated the seemingly excessive spending, especially in the current economy, officials claim the need for as many returned forms as possible because of the implications. Depending on the amount of people accounted for in the census, legislative districts are shaped a certain way, and the $400 billion in federal aid is distributed to various parts of the country.

It is estimated only four out of five Americans return their form.

Aside from that, and a possible anti-abortion ad from the Tebow family, CBS is expected to air another slate of memorable, humorous ads with the possibility of the biggest television crowd in the game's history.

There have already been a few commercials leaked, like the new GoDaddy.com ad by Danica Patrick, but many of the high-buzz ones are being locked up. LeBron James and Dwight Howard are said to be in a McDonald's ad that remakes the old 1993 "Nothing But Net" bit.

Commercials have even made their way into Super Bowl Betting. With the possibility of many controversial ads stirring viewers, wagers can be placed on which one will be the highest rated in USA Today's ad meter. There are six specific companies mentioned, but Anhueser-Busch is the favorite because of their wide range of ads during the game. It typically pays for four to six ads during the game. Because of the breadth of possibilities, the field is the next in line at 11/4. After that, soft drink company Coca-Cola is favored at 8/1.

The beverage conglomerate will benefit this year from the fact that Pepsi has pulled it's marketing strategy from the Super Bowl, and will instead use most of those dollars to go to their Pepsi Refresh campaign.

Being Coke is Career Builder and GoDaddy.com. Both usually go for the shock factor so it can go either way sometimes, making it one of the true gambles.

According to Bodog Sportsbook, Tebow's Family First ad has the sixth-best odds at 12/1, just in front of Doritos at 12/5.