Even from high atop the nosebleeds at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada Sunday, spectators could probably see San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan wince as Kansas City Chiefs surefire kicker Harrison Butker connected on a 29-yard field goal with three seconds left to send Super Bowl LVIII into overtime.
Somewhere else, CBS accountants and ad-sales operatives exchanged high-fives.
With the Chiefs needing nearly all of a 15-minute overtime period to vanquish San Francisco, the network was able to run an additional 10 commercials, generating an extra $60 million in revenue, according to figures reported by Sportico.
CBS sold its inventory at an average rate of $6.47 million per 30 second spot, the news site reports, with a certain number of "contingency" spots transacted in the scatter market.
All told, CBS walked away with $695 million in ad revenue from Super Bowl LVIII.
GroupM had three of the ads presented in the high-engagement overtime period.
“Overtime is a pivotal moment in a football game, not only for the players on the field and fans of the teams, but for everyone watching, said Martin Blich, executive director of sports and live investment for GroupM, to Sportico. "With attention for this year’s event at an all-time high, we worked with our brand partners before the game and in real-time during the fourth quarter to land these coveted spots.”
CBS is paying the NFL around $2 billion a year for a rights package that extends through 2033. It's next and only Super Bowl until then will come in 2028.
