Super Bowl LIX: Americans Plan to Tune-In to the Big Game for Football & Fun, Not Fanfare or Media Frenzies

• New poll finds 93% of Americans plan tune-in to the big game at home or at a family or friend’s house, with majority (49%) to tune-in for the game itself, not the fanfare or celebs  
• Taylor Swift’s attendance holds no sway over most - 27% will be watching regardless of her being there, while a further 38% are not excited by her turning up at the Superdome 
• Despite the Surgeon General’s recent warning associating even moderate alcohol use with increased cancer risk, 50% shared that the warning will have no impact on their Super Bowl Sunday consumption 

Attest, a leading New York-based consumer research platform, today releases research on how Americans plan to tune-in to Super Bowl LIX. 

Looking back, last year’s Super Bowl gained widespread attention for more than just football, especially with pop star Taylor Swift’s attendance and potential impact on viewership, while online conversations swirled about the NFL being scripted or pre-determined. All this fanfare and controversy considered, what are American consumers hoping (and not hoping) this game day will bring them?  

The research finds most Americans are either “definitely” or “probably” (65%) planning to watch the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles go head-to-head.

• Feelings on the NFL being scripted: The data reveals that a third of Americans feel the games are “probably” or “definitely” scripted (at 33%), versus 40% who disagree and 26% who feel “unsure”, meaning the draw of the most anticipated game of the year is reigning supreme over allegations and theories of the League being scripted.  
• Genuine excitement about the game, more than the razzle dazzle: In further good news for the NFL, the top reason cited for tuning in this year is excitement for watching the game itself (49%), followed by the Super Bowl commercials (35%), and the halftime show and performances (34%).  
• The Swift impact is overestimated, most are also not into the half-time show: Despite the media blitz last year, those polled shared pop star Taylor Swift’s attendance has little effect on their viewing plans – 27% will be watching regardless of her being there, while a further 38% are not excited by her attendance at all. The same goes for rapper Kendrick Lamar’s half-time show – most (43%) are “neither more nor less excited” to tune-in since he was booked.  

Americans Watch from the Comfort of Their Couch (or a Friend or Family’s)  

The research also finds the majority Americans (93%) plan to forgo public places like bars or restaurants to instead watch the game at home with members of their household only (45%) or alone (16%) or at a Super Bowl Party hosted at a friend’s or family member’s house (30%).   

This means that the Super Bowl will be largely watched via the trusty home television set, with 47% planning to watch the game on a cable TV channel and 39% planning to stream it. Only 1.5% are willing to forgo the excitement of the live game by recording it and watching it later.  

The Game Day Spread Will be Homemade & Alcohol Will Pour (Despite Warning) 

For many, the Super Bowl is synonymous with alcohol consumption, with the gameday hangover dubbed the “Super Bowl Flu” and a long-time uptick in Americans calling out from work “sick” the next day.  

This year, the affinity for drink holds true, despite the Surgeon General’s recent high-profile warning that even moderate alcohol consumption increases risk of multiple cancers - 50% shared that the warning will have no impact on if they consume or serve alcohol on Super Bowl Sunday (versus 25%). 

When it comes to what viewers will be feasting on, half (50%) of Americans are planning on going to the store themselves and making their spread from scratch, versus 11% ordering from a food delivery app, 8% from a local restaurant, and 4.8% from a national food chain.  

When polled on which of the classics will be on their tables, only 17% shared that they were not sure about what they’d be serving. For those who were already decided, the ranking on dishes to be served is as follows:   

• Chicken wings (51%)  
• Pizza (47%)  
• Nachos (38%)  
• Burgers (28%)  
• Barbecue (24%)  
• Hot Dogs (19%)  
• Seven-Layer Dip (18%)  
• Vegetarian Options (6%)   

What Americans want from this year’s Super Bowl ads 

After a highly divisive election, Americans are ready to take a day off from politics and laugh. When it comes to the kinds of ads they want to see at this year’s Super Bowl, the vast majority (56%) want ads to be humorous, far behind are those with no preference (13%) and those seeking motivational (11%) ads.  

Outside of brand messaging, celebrity-driven ads are what most interests this year’s Super Bowl audience (at 40%). This is followed by viewers having an interest in ads that give them a chance to save money or win something, such as commercials that offer exclusive discount codes (30%) and commercials that offer viewer contests with cash prizes / sweepstakes (27%).  

This is in line with a more light-hearted tone for this year’s game, with 69% saying they don’t like or are indifferent to ads of a political nature during the game. And when it comes to big brand recognition, Budweiser takes home the trophy as the number one brand that consumers most associate with Super Bowl advertisements, followed by Pepsi and Nike.