Campaigns of the Month – Super Bowl Special

The biggest night in American sport once again delivered on the biggest playground in advertising. Humour has always played a big role in Super Bowl advertising, but in 2026 it felt more dialled up than ever before. More celebrities. More budget. And more digs at competitors and public moments that audiences instantly recognise. Pepsi, we’re looking at you.

Here are the standout campaigns.

Uber Eats returned to its conspiracy-laced world with Matthew McConaughey back for a second year, this time joined by Bradley Cooper. The spot builds on last year’s premise, leaning further into food myths and playful paranoia. The real strength of the campaign, though, sits beyond the main film. Uber Eats invited viewers to create their own versions of the ad using the same premise, effectively turning a Super Bowl moment into a participatory campaign. It’s smart, scalable and designed to live well beyond game night.

Pringles wasted no time cashing in on one of pop culture’s most in-demand faces right now. The ad depicts Sabrina creating her dream man out of the saddle-shaped confectionery. It is knowingly daft and leans into meme and Gen Z humour to bring pure snack-brand chaos. It’s designed for immediate impact rather than long explanation and that simplicity, of course, works during the Super Bowl.

Pepsi’s Taika Waititi-directed spot is packed with jabs, something we’ve come to expect from Coca-Cola’s greatest rival. From hijacking Coke’s iconic polar bear to taking a clear shot at their AI-driven Christmas campaign, Pepsi makes its competitive stance clear. The nod to the Coldplay concert affair is not so subtle either, albeit very funny. The result is a confident, mischievous piece of work that reminds audiences the cola rivalry is still alive and well, and that Pepsi is more than happy to stir the pot (again).

Manscaped delivered one of the strangest ads of the night and one of the most memorable, with clumps of hair singing to their newly shaved partners. ‘Hair Ballad’ is bizarre, slightly uncomfortable, but genuinely funny. It fully leans into absurdity and the brand’s irreverent tone to make its point. In a Super Bowl packed with celebrities and special effects, Manscaped stood out by committing to an idea that feels unexpected and unfiltered.

Instacart’s spot feels like it was made for anyone who grew up on late 90s and early 2000s comedies. Starring Ben Stiller alongside Benson Boone and directed by Spike Jonze, the ad is deliberately nonsensical, over the top and joyfully confusing. It echoes the spirit of films like Zoolander and Blades of Glory, where logic takes a back seat to pure entertainment. You might not fully understand what is happening, but you are definitely smiling while it does.

Super Bowl LX showed how brands use this moment less to explain what they sell and more to define how they want to be perceived. These ads prioritise presence, personality and entertainment, using humour and scale to earn attention in an increasingly crowded space.

It does raise an interesting question though. Do brands actually have to “cut through the noise” anymore, or do they simply have to be the noisiest? And is that something we, as creatives should be concerned about?

Perhaps that’s a blog for another day…