The Best Super Bowl Commercials of All Time, According to SI Writers

If you really wanted to, you could argue that Super Bowl ads are a bigger deal than the game itself—after all, everyone watches TV; not everyone watches football. Indeed, while there are lots of people who can recall key, game-changing plays from over the years, there are probably more who can recall a standout ad spot that brought them to tears, left them in awe, or had them cracking up for days after.

So in honor of the biggest Sunday of the advertising year, we here at Sports Illustrated's Breaking Trending News Team figured we'd walk you through a few of our all-time favorite SB commercials, some of which you'll see as obvious selections ... but some of which you've probably forgotten about entirely.

Prepare for a Mad Men-worthy walk down memory lane.

Bud Bowl 1
Terry Tate, Office Linebacker
The Man Your Man Could Smell Like
Whassup?
You're Not You When You're Hungry (feat. Betty White)
Imported From Detroit
Slap
The Force
Breaking Good
Jordan vs. Bird
Puppy Love
QR Code
Grandma Strikes Back

Bud Bowl 1

As a young kid, I’ll never forget sitting on my couch and watching intently as two beers from the same company battled it out on the gridiron for … the world championship of beer? The best part was that the Bud Bowl went on throughout the Super Bowl, and each time a new one would pop up, the room would go silent, as everyone locked in to see what would happen next in this epic showdown between Bud Light and Budweiser. It was genius marketing and deserves to be known as the ad campaign that revolutionized the world of Super Bowl commercials. Budweiser needs to do the right thing and bring back the Bud Bowl so kids everywhere can get the feeling I had during my youth. Who won the initial Bud Bowl? America. That’s who. Bud Bowl forever. — Andy Nesbitt

Terry Tate, Office Linebacker

Back in the early 2000s, before the NFL started using the rulebook to protect its offensive stars, receivers had to keep their heads on a swivel when running between the hashes. If a ball wasn’t placed perfectly on a quick slant route, pass catchers would often violently collide with a 235-pound linebacker, a hit that would be glorified on a “Jacked Up” segment the next week.

Well, the same thing was a concern in offices around the country with Terry Tate, Office Linebacker, patrolling the coffee room. The ad, created by the Arnell Group for Reebok, first ran during Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003 and portrayed lead character Terry Tate, an intimidating but friendly linebacker, enforcing office rules in a way Dwight Schrute could only dream. Forgot to refill the coffee maker? You’re getting sacked by Tate. Take a break that lasted too long? Tate will be staring you down like a running back in the open field. — Tom Dierberger

The Man Your Man Could Smell Like

This Old Spice ad, released in 2010, has served as the standard for 30-second Super Bowl ads over the last 15 years. From the jump, a shirtless man immediately grabs our attention, leaving us surprised, intrigued, and perhaps puzzled that such a sight has appeared on our television screens. We're then actively engaged as a smooth baritone voice instructs us to look up, down, and sideways ... all while the film set shifts before our eyes. Suddenly, the shirtless man is on a horse, then holding a handful of diamonds, as the Old Spice jingle plays. All in a cool 33 seconds. It’s the perfect ad in many ways— it inspires a chuckle, features an iconic tune, is creative enough to stick in the mind beyond the next 30 seconds, and the product itself is a side plot to the way they’re marketing it. Look down. Look up again! I’m on a horse. — Liam McKeone

Whassup?

The Budweiser "Whassup?" commercial spawned at least two Super Bowl sequels, as well as a number of other Bud ads that exist inside the Whassup-iverse. The original spot was referenced in films and shows like Scary Movie and The Office, and inspired countless parodies. But most importantly, it literally changed the way people greeted each other around the turn of the century. It was simple and stupid and so fun. Just friends making loud noises and being excited to talk to each other, even though they really had nothing to say. It was more than a commercial; it was about community, and watching the game. If you had to distill guys being dudes into a 60-second beer commercial, "Whassup?" is it. — Stephen Douglas

You're Not You When You're Hungry (feat. Betty White)

RIP to an icon. An extremely simple ad that’s executed well, and with the help of the incomparable Betty White. Sure, it's a topical premise for the football fans watching at home, but it's really a commercial that appeals to everyone, since we all know what happens when we’re hangry. We also all know Snickers’ oft-quoted tagline, but the ad strikes the perfect balance of nostalgia and comedy (the shot of White getting tackled in the mud is so good) before showing its hand with a clever twist. Instantly iconic. Simple is sometimes best. — Kristen Wong

Imported From Detroit

It requires some suspension of disbelief—about subprime mortgages, TARP, etc—but this Super Bowl XLV spot almost exists outside the world of advertising. At the eye-popping cost of $12.5 million—about $18 million today—Chrysler enlisted legendary firm Wieden+Kennedy to make a two-minute neorealist film to counteract Detroit’s (and, well, Chrysler’s) atrocious Recession-era public image. Mission accomplished. Juxtaposing scenes of everyday life with images of civic landmarks like Detroit Industry and the Monument to Joe Louis, the ad understatedly counters the narrative of decay and blight that surrounded the city in the late 2000s. At 0:40, shifting the goosebumps into overdrive, the guitar lick from “Lose Yourself” kicks in. The commercial concludes with Recovery-era Eminem delivering the tagline in the historic Fox Theatre: "This is the Motor City, and this is what we do." Popular with Michiganders and the ad industry (it won a Creative Arts Emmy), it set a standard for serious Super Bowl fare that has never been surpassed. — Patrick Andres

Slap

Doritos has been a Super Bowl commercial staple over the years, and the chip brand’s best work may have come back in 2010, when it created what can only be considered an instant classic. In my eyes, a perfect Super Bowl commercial consists of three things: simplicity, stupidity and silliness. This Doritos spot had a brilliant combination of all three and left behind some delightfully quotable lines, which I'm still repeating more than 15 years later. — Karl Rasmussen

The Force

Forget Luke—Darth is where it's at. In this wisely-designed (no dialogue = perfect for a party) and geniusly bare-bones Volkswagen ad from 2011, a young, Star Wars-obsessed boy grows increasingly frustrated as his attempts to use the Force fail. But when his dad returns from work, keys for the VW in hand, our leading man has what can only be described as a Sith Lord breakthrough ... sponsored by the car's remote start feature. It's everything a Super Bowl ad should be—heartwarming, hilarious and easy to follow—wrapped up in a nostalgia-tinged package. Darth, it was your father. — Brigid Kennedy

Breaking Good

Everything about this commercial—a reboot of the always-bingeable series Breaking Bad—was perfect. Bryan Cranston as Walter White and Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman return to their humble beginnings in the RV van, where, instead of methamphetamine, they’ve cooked up PopCorners. And the best part? The pair lean into the schtick entirely, from Pinkman's amazement at Mr. White’s prowess to White chiding Pinkman for “eating our own supply." Later, Walter rattles off his iconic line in reference to the snack he and Jesse have created, while Raymond Cruz as the always-frightening Tuco Salamanca demands that the guys make seven flavors of PopCorners instead of the six they promised. Absolute cinema. — Tim Capurso

Jordan vs. Bird

There’s zero doubt this is one of the greatest Super Bowl commercials ever. Michael Jordan and Larry Bird going shot-for-shot to win a Big Mac and fries is such a simple concept, but the execution was perfect. Especially when Bird proposes, “First one to miss watches the winner eat.” Absolutely savage. Never mind that it was originally Jordan’s lunch, so Bird is just trying to wedge his way into a free meal. Regardless, watching two of the greatest players in NBA history trading increasingly difficult shots for the right to fire down a 600-calorie burger was amazing, and the concept holds up. For years, my friends and I would punctuate every HORSE shot selection with “Nothing but net” in honor of the commercial. Jordan vs. Bird for a Big Mac. So simple. So genius. — Ryan Phillips

Puppy Love

When you think of Budweiser Super Bowl commercials, you immediately think of beautiful Clydesdales—the horses have become synonymous with the beer brand over the years. But when Budweiser added a sweet and cute little puppy to the advertisement, it was a different story for me. To that end, there’s one commercial that has been etched in my mind since I first saw it over a decade ago: “Puppy Love” from 2014. This ad depicts two unlikely friends—a yellow Labrador puppy and a Clydesdale. After repeatedly pulling the dog away from his horse friend, the puppy's parents stick the dog in a car, where he pounds on the window in distress. The Clydesdale then jumps into action, chasing after his puppy friend while the car drives away. Ugh, talk about pulling at the heartstrings. Thankfully, though, the two still get to play with one another in the end. This commercial really hit home for me at the time—I had a golden Labrador growing up, and we lost her in 2011. Seeing a puppy on television that looked nearly identical to her was memorable for me. Plus, I mean, who doesn’t love puppies? — Madison Williams

QR Code

First, a disclaimer: I am not a crypto guy, nor am I the owner of any cryptocurrency. I just think Coinbase's commercial from Super Bowl LVI was a genius ad. As that QR code bounced around the screen, like something out of the DVD era, we all wondered: what exactly is this for? Well, you wouldn't know unless you caught the quick "paid for by Coinbase" text at the end ... or if you pulled out your phone to scan the code. (It helped that this ran during the pandemic, when QR codes regained steam.) If the brand's goal was to get viewers to engage simply out of curiosity, Coinbase accomplished that. — Blake Silverman

Grandma Strikes Back

Doritos has produced some great Super Bowl commercials over the years, and this advertisement is no different. Grandma has become an iconic character in these spots, and in this edition—from Super Bowl XLVI—the old woman gets back at her grandchild for bragging about hoarding the nacho cheese-flavored chips. Doritos were never a staple snack in my house growing up, but these commercials bring back nostalgia anyway. — Eva Geithem