Going into Super Bowl LX, iSpot Creative Assessment tested over 60 teasers and 40 in-game spots, with the full game coming this evening/early Monday morning.
Given the ads that have already been evaluated, however, here are the trends iSpot is identifying up front this year.
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Animals Winning Big
- Animals are featured in all four of the most likeable ads pre-game, according to iSpot Creative Assessment scores, led by Ring’s “Be A Hero In Your Neighborhood,” about finding lost dogs.
- Budweiser’s “American Icons” leans into clydesdales and Americana for the brand’s 150th anniversary.
- Last year, animals took a backseat to children in Super Bowl ads—37% for kids vs. just 25% of ads for animals—but animals were in 33% of tested 2026 Super Bowl ads pre-game.
Celebs Keep Surging
- Since 2010, celebrities have flipped from being featured in 31% of ads to 68% in 2025 (peaking at 78% in 2020).
- Multi-celebrity ads have also become the norm, at 51% last year, as brands try to hit as many audience quadrants as possible in their small 30-second window.
- Looking at tested ads pre-game, celebrities appeared in 60% of ads, with 40% of ads being multi-celebrity spots (both down vs. last year).
- Notably, celebrity ads don’t necessarily yield higher likeability, however—with recent years showing celebrity ads performing just below all-Super Bowl norms by that metric.
Feelings or Funny?
- Of the ads tested pre-game, 63% of teasers scored for Funny according to iSpot Creative Assessment, down from last year’s high of 71%.
- Last year’s most likeable Super Bowl spot, “Knockout,” scored very well for heartfelt emotions and was not funny at all.
- Before the game, the two most likeable ads—Ring’s “Be A Hero In Your Neighborhood” and Budweiser’s “American Icons” are not ads scoring for Funny, either.
All-In on AI?
- Nearly a quarter of pre-released Super Bowl ads tested dealt with AI in some way (including Svedka’s spot created with AI).
- Recent emerging Super Bowl categories like AI and cryptocurrency have not performed as well as other brands’ with audiences, typically avoiding both overtly funny or heartfelt pitches.
- This year could buck that trend, though: Amazon’s Alexa+ spot, starring Chris Hemsworth, was No. 3 by Likeability pre-game while directly addressing AI-related concerns with humor.
That’s just a sample of how iSpot understands the Super Bowl ad landscape. Come back here for more Super Bowl trends through the game, and be sure to tune into our AdAge webinar on Tuesday after the game for a thorough look at the biggest trends that shaped this year’s Big Game.