The Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers will be squaring off Sunday night in Super Bowl LVIII. Las Vegas, Nevada will play host to the biggest night in American sports. The game is so big, National Retail Federation predicts Americans will spend a record $17.3 billion this year on things like food, clothing, and party supplies, but that number doesn't even touch on things like gambling, advertisements, and travel. The Super Bowl is a moneymaking juggernaut for companies across a variety of industries. Yahoo Finance spoke to some of the companies who expect to score big on game day.
Key interviews:
00:01:05 Amy Howe, FanDuel CEO
00:05:35 Jason Robins, DraftKings Co-Founder & CEO
00:08:40 Carolyn Goodman, Mayor of Las Vegas
00:16:40 Tal Jacobson, Perion CEO
00:20:05 Bob Bakish, Paramount CEO
Editor's note: This article was written by Stephanie Mikulich.
Video Transcript
- Welcome back to Yahoo Finance. The Super Bowl is here. And this year's big game is just that big. Super Bowl LVIII has it all, from legends on the field to superstars off the field. And did we mention it's in Las Vegas? Something about this year's game just feels bigger.
JULIE HYMAN: And all week leading up to the Super Bowl, Yahoo Finance has been speaking with executives and analysts to break down the financial implications of the big game. We've heard from CEOs at FanDuel and DraftKings to talk the betting landscape.
Paramount's Bob Bakish spoke to the coverage of the game. And the mayor of Las Vegas joined discussing the city's economic growth. So while the game is big, the impact it has on the world around it is much bigger.
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BRAD SMITH: Football fans gearing up to watch Super Bowl LVIII, while sports bettors place their final wagers. A record 68 million Americans plan to wager approximately $23 billion on the game. FanDuel expecting this Super Bowl to be its biggest single event in 2024. For more on this, we bring in FanDuel CEO Amy Howe.
Amy, great to catch up with you. Look, big weekend here ahead as we're expecting so much eyeballs, impressions, fanfare, and, as well, dollar flow around the--
AMY HOWE: Yeah.
BRAD SMITH: --Super Bowl. What is the handle that FanDuel is anticipating going into this event?
AMY HOWE: Well, thank you for having me. It's always so fun to be with you guys. Listen, there's no doubt we're going to set some records this year. Every Super Bowl is a record for us. We're heading into it with phenomenal momentum. We just came off the NFC Championship, which was the single biggest day we've ever had. In fact, I think, at our peak, we had 60,000 bets per minute.
But there's something for everyone. If you-- if you go on the FanDuel app, you'll see over 600 pre-live markets, great live betting offerings this year. And as you can imagine, there's a tremendous amount of excitement around the player props, Travis Kelce, of course, Patrick Mahomes, Christian McCaffrey.
But there's really something for everyone. There's-- yeah, one of the big player props there, the props that has really taken off is the Correct Score took off on a social channel. It's one of the most popular that folks thinking that the Chiefs are going to win 31 to-- or sorry. Yeah, 31 to 21 to the 49ers. So go online and there's lots to look forward to.
SEANA SMITH: Amy, I'm sure you've gotten a lot of questions just about the Taylor Swift effect. But I'm curious if you have seen it draw in more female interest or more women using FanDuel to bet because of the interest that's been generated by Taylor Swift?
AMY HOWE: Yeah, we really have. If you look at our new activations, close to 35% of them are women. There's no doubt it has really attracted a new user to our platform. And it's such a perfect time of the year to do it, right? Women and men get the opportunity to see why people are so excited about sports betting. It's really kind of created a game within a game.
Since Taylor Swift has been on the scene, the player props for Travis Kelce have more than doubled. So it's bringing that excitement. And it's also bringing-- it's brought more women to NFL as well. So it's had a really positive effect.
BRAD SMITH: We were all watching, with great anticipation, the IPO of your parent company Flutter. When you think about how you look at that moment and now try to figure out, OK, what is the next growth initiative that we put forward at FanDuel from here to contribute to that larger business, what does that roadmap look like for the year?
AMY HOWE: Yeah, I mean, gosh, that was just last week. We were standing on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange ringing the bell. Rob Gronkowski was there. By the way, don't forget to go pick whether Rob's going to make or miss. But, listen, it's a huge moment for us right now.
Flutter is the largest global gaming company in the world. And so now, US investors really have an opportunity to buy into the leading, now most profitable brand in the US. And that is going to just further fuel our competitive advantage, will allow us to reinvest back into really strengthening our lead on product and innovation.
And as more of the US market opens up-- 50% of the market still has to open up California, Florida, and Texas over time-- it just gives us tremendous runway. And importantly, it also gives us an opportunity to continue to attract and retain the very best talent in the world. So we couldn't be more excited about that inflection point. And there's even more runway ahead.
SEANA SMITH: Amy, when you talk about attracting new and retaining your current users here, what is your marketing spend look like and how are you trying to budget for that given the fact that we are expected to get more states to come online over the next couple of years?
AMY HOWE: Well, marketing is such a critical part of what we're doing, right? We're trying to bring consumers over from the black market. And we're trying to do that safely. As new states open up, it's important to make sure that we can create awareness around our brand but also create awareness around how you bet responsibly.
So it's a critical part of how we bring users onto the platform. And we've had the opportunity to partner with the biggest leagues in the world. We have a great partnership with the NFL, the NBA, all the leagues that you see up on the screen right here.
And we're working with some of the biggest media partners to make sure that we can reach the sports betting consumer in the right moment. And Super Bowl is-- there's no better time. This is one of the single biggest events to bring new users onto the platform and show why there's so much excitement in sports betting.
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JASON ROBINS: Obviously, this is the biggest weekend of the year for us. It's not just the biggest weekend from a betting volume standpoint, it's also when we acquire and activate the most customers. You just showed the huge number of Americans that are betting, most of them still betting in the illegal markets.
There's still a ton of room left to grow just by tapping into people who are already betting with more state legalization, just more adoption of legal mainstream sports betting.
RACHELLE AKUFFO: And, Jason, how much are you seeing outside of the supporters of the teams who are already supporting this game? For people, your regular non-football viewer, of course, because of Taylor Swift also coming in to watch these games as well, perhaps wanting to place a Flutter there, how much of an expansion are you seeing in terms of getting new audiences into sports betting?
JASON ROBINS: Well, anecdotally, we're certainly hearing it. It's still early. Believe it or not, most of the action actually comes in more of like the Saturday, Sunday time frame. So I haven't actually gotten updated stats yet on customer acquisition and if we're seeing new demographics.
But anecdotally, you're certainly hearing more interest from a wider variety of fans. You know, I definitely give Taylor credit for that. She's brought some new fans to the game. And I think the Super Bowl is a perfect moment where anyone really can bet. Because you can bet on things like the coin toss or the color of the Gatorade that'll be dumped on the coach, the winning coach at the end, and all sorts of stuff that even if you're not actually a fan of the sport, it's just fun stuff to bet on along watching different aspects of the game.
So I think it's great kind of opportunity to not just bring in new fans because of the Taylor impact, which is obviously real, but also because of the fact that it's the Super Bowl. And it's just so mainstream. And everybody watches it. And there's all kinds of cool stuff you can bet on.
AKIKO FUJITA: So, Jason, you may not be able to reveal the numbers going into this weekend. But I'm curious, when you look at past Super Bowls, how critical the event is for a company like DraftKings in getting new users, new people on board, and how sticky is it? Is it just one and done for the game or do oftentimes those users stick around?
JASON ROBINS: Well, it's a great question. So, you know, definitely the Super Bowl is the day that we acquire the most customers, activate the most customers. And, you know, from that reason alone, just cast a wide net, you're going to get more casual people in there. And so, yes, there are people that just kind of come for the Super Bowl. And maybe they come back for March Madness or something like that. But they're not regularly betting on NBA or other sports.
And then there's people that have been betting all season that this is our chance to activate them. Maybe they were playing with competitors. Maybe they were doing other things. And also, there's people that have been with us all year. And it's just a great opportunity to continue to engage them and give them fun stuff to bet on. And hopefully, get them excited about coming back and betting on other sports or at least coming back for next NFL season.
AKIKO FUJITA: Coming up Las Vegas mayor Carolyn Goodman joins the show to talk about the city's economy in relation to its booming tourist attractions and expanding presence in professional sports.
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Well, it is official. Las Vegas is hosting its very first Super Bowl. The big game is the latest in a string of sports wins for the city as the legalization of sports betting makes the city an increasingly attractive destination for leagues. But the city's mayor Carolyn Goodman says it wasn't always that way. I spoke to her about the long road it took to get here.
CAROLYN GOODMAN: My husband actually made a list of all the commissioners of every Major League sports and went out about the country to go visit these commissioners to talk about coming to Las Vegas. Of course, it fell on deaf ears. But it didn't stop us. And we had the Summer League with David Stern from the NBA here. And things began to develop. And we established good personal relationships.
And then in the 2003 Super Bowl, the city made an effort to advertise, because we have a great city, lots of hotel rooms, great entertainment. And of course, we were turned down. Why? Because Nevada was not the best place to be advertising that had legalized gambling.
Well, lo and behold, every city almost every state in the country is always looking for ways to fund their many, many projects. And it became more and more challenging. And in 2018, the Supreme Court said, bingo, open up sports betting, anybody legal, legal sports betting.
And of course, here, we were, for years, decades, having everything in place to monitor it and make sure how we do it and-- But therefore, it became OK. And so the Major League sports pursuit continued. It's so exciting for us here in Las Vegas to have this wonderful event coming here now right now.
AKIKO FUJITA: How much of an economic boom or economic bump are you likely to get from the Super Bowl as in the city of Las Vegas? To what extent does that trickle down to the residents that live there?
CAROLYN GOODMAN: Well, you know, I think, first of all, the excitement here is palpable certainly because we have now enlarged our airport to bring in direct flights from around the world. Everybody knows the name Las Vegas. Even if you don't speak English, you hear it, heads turn, they're excited. It seems to be a place where so much is going on.
We've got great dining experiences, shopping, great weather normally. As I said, an ability to have conventions and meetings and just everything's so tight and yet so many opportunities for personal sports be it golf or tennis. Red Rock is internationally known for its great rock climbing.
Of course, we have dwindling Lake Mead, which we're holding on to for all the boating events that you want to do. And it's just a place where 24/7 everything's open. And that is like no other city in the country. Everybody closes down, while we go into a new shift.
AKIKO FUJITA: I counted four sports teams, professional sports teams you've got in place in Las Vegas so far including the WNBA. You've got another team moving in, the Oakland A's soon to be the Las Vegas A's. How do you build on this vision?
CAROLYN GOODMAN: You continue on. We've been trying for the MLS soccer through commissioner Garber now for my full term. We were pretty close as they seek to expand and bring in new franchises. I am convinced it's just a question of when that Adam Silver will say, yep, we love Vegas.
I mean, it just continues, because of the hospitality and our pride and how we do proceed to build a base for people to come in, relax, have a good time, stop your worries, and come in here. Or pursue investing in our wonderful community. Because unlike, as you would well know, so many other states, we have no state income tax, no business tax, no estate tax. And we have so many opportunities where one can find funds to build and develop. So it's just-- you know, it's so exciting. I need to see what's coming next.
AKIKO FUJITA: Mayor, let's talk about the broader economy, Nevada, the state of Nevada has the highest unemployment rate in the country. At last check, the rate is well above 5% in Las Vegas as well compared to 3.7% unemployment nationally. How much of this is a COVID hang up? Why do you think it's been so difficult?
CAROLYN GOODMAN: The fastest recovery out of COVID was right here in the heart of the city. Not in the county, in the city. We were the number one recovering place. Now a lot of it for us in the heart of the city has to do with a lot of small business. It also had to do with the fact that our governor during COVID shut the Strip down.
So when you go ahead and also close the schools, that's where the impact was. But all of our people, we have a lot of unskilled but very necessary jobs to take care of our hospitality corridor. And when he, the governor, closed down our community, that put down the enormity of our hospitality workers.
AKIKO FUJITA: Yeah, I mean, when you think about the trajectory of where the economy is headed, are you confident you can get back to some of those pre-pandemic levels? You sort of-- Las Vegas really came to a halt. The economy-- the impact was pretty significant the services sector right at the heart of it.
CAROLYN GOODMAN: I just-- the whole thought of this is our entire economy, 100% of the people that come here want to be part of this vitality. And the hospitality corridor of the Strip, even though we're diversifying our economy, it is more than just the Strip. And we could talk about technology and so many other things, our medical district, what we're doing there, the cultural base. These are all employment pockets. But it was the Strip. And that-- that is what closed down. And so the recovery, it is almost back. We're almost up to the tourist visitation.
AKIKO FUJITA: Finally, Mayor, if I can bring the conversation back to sports, because that's where we started and sports betting, which has really led to a big boom in the Vegas economy, have you placed a bet on the big game?
CAROLYN GOODMAN: My husband will bet on cockroaches racing across the floor. We have one person that bets in the family. Well, to my knowledge, there are six members of the family but one. And he loves it. And we have more prop bets than you can imagine. Interestingly enough, no prop bets are being taken on whether Taylor Swift makes it or doesn't make it and how many times the camera is going to focus on her.
So it is-- you're absolutely right. And our downtown, our sportsbooks here are just having the best times. And of course, we have all these wonderful hotel rooms that shows Las Vegas does a lot of winning in what it bets on.
AKIKO FUJITA: Mayor Goodman, really appreciate the time today. Thanks so much for joining us.
CAROLYN GOODMAN: Thank you so much for having us.
JULIE HYMAN: Coming up, everyone's favorite part of the Super Bowl is, of course, the commercials. After the break, we'll hear from analysts to break down the advertising outlook of the big game.
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AKIKO FUJITA: Companies are investing big in advertising ahead of the big game this Sunday. The average cost for a 30-second Super Bowl commercial is reaching $7 million for the second consecutive year. And brands are looking to get their money's worth with Forbes forecasting viewership will exceed the record 115 million.
For more on this, we are joined by Tal Jacobson from Perion CEO. Tal, it's good to talk to you. $7 million is a lot of money. How significant is that return still? Is this the broadest audience that brands can reach?
TAL JACOBSON: I think it's absolutely amazing that it went up to $7 million. But look at the Sphere at Vegas. It now went up to $1 million for a spot, $1 million for a spot on the Sphere. I think, you know, obviously, Taylor Swift did an amazing job getting a lot of new audience to see the Super Bowl, more females, more Gen Z, more millennials.
But absolutely I think-- I think this pushes a lot of advertising budgets. We at Perion constantly looking at how do we get those promotions across all channels. That's what we actually focus on with our technology. And specifically with the Super Bowl, companies, you know, e.l.f Cosmetics, NYX cosmetics. We would never think about advertising in the Super Bowl.
Twenty years ago, it's what? Mainly Budweiser, right? But they're shifting into that. And they're constantly thinking about the bigger picture. So they're going to do TV ads, CTVs. They're going to do out-of-home like the Sphere or other programmatic out-of-home. But also a lot of social. And this is where actually our company gets into play, how do we connect all those channels, how do we actually make sense out of all those channels so the advertiser actually makes sense.
RACHELLE AKUFFO: So, Tal, how are advertisers planning on dividing up the pie of where they're spending this money, given the range of ways that they're trying to reach viewers?
TAL JACOBSON: So, you know, it all starts with demographic, right? The fact that Super Bowl is now 46% females, that's a big shift. So that's why you're going to see a lot more ads for cosmetics, a lot more ads for lifestyle. But again, social is booming. CTV which is TV ads for streaming is booming now. Everybody is going to look for that.
On a $7 million for an ad, that's for linear. But it also happens on CTVs on streaming. But with streaming, you can actually customize the message through the location. So with linear TV, you would normally get the same message nationwide. With CTV, you can actually customize that based on location. So people in different locations are going to get different messages.
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BRIAN SOZZI: Super Bowl LVIII kicking off this Sunday between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers with, of course, some Taylor Swift mixed in. What looks to be strong ad demand comes at an opportune time for Paramount, which will be showing the game on its CBS Network and with a host of new technologies for viewers.
Some of those viewers may include the familiar faces reportedly interested in purchasing part or all of the iconic media company. Joining me now is Bob Bakish Paramount global chief executive officer and president live on the Las Vegas Strip. Bob, always nice to get some time with you.
Looks like a tough assignment for you right now. But nonetheless, we appreciate your time today. So talk to us about the demand for ads for the Super Bowl. Are you at record-breaking levels for this game?
BOB BAKISH: So, Brian, great to be with you from Vegas approaching the biggest weekend of the year with the Super Bowl. And that's coming off our highest-rated season since NFL came back to CBS in 1998, coming off of the highest-rated divisional playoff game in history for the network.
And to your question on ad sales, yes, we've already set the high-water mark for a Super Bowl with respect to ad revenue. And we're looking forward to potentially setting the record for viewership as well. So really exciting to be in Vegas. The city is electric. And it's going to be a great weekend.
BRIAN SOZZI: It sounds like electric. Bob, looks like they're still putting stuff together behind you with that construction. They better finish. The game is only a couple of days away. So when you talk to advertisers, why do you think they've really stepped up here and spent what? $7 million for a 30-second ad. But why have they opened up their pocketbooks?
BOB BAKISH: Look, the NFL is extraordinary product. It really captures the American and that, for that matter, global viewer. People love the sportsmanship and track their teams, et cetera. And it's a great way-- it's a great environment for messaging for advertisers. So we see a very strong demand.
By the way, we're doing the first-ever Nickelodeon alternate telecast of a Super Bowl. That product too is sold-out. So the ad business around sports is very strong. The ad business around the NFL is part of sports is obviously the top side of that. And it's just-- it's a product people want to be part of because viewers want to experience it.
BRIAN SOZZI: When I hear you say record-breaking ad demand for the Super Bowl, I can't help but to think, Bob, Taylor Swift has some role in this. How do you view it?
BOB BAKISH: Look, Taylor is a phenomenon. As we all know, she's a force in the music industry. Her tour has been massive. And she's captured the imagination of fans, including NFL fans and is definitely bringing some incremental audience to the game. And we're fortunate that she'll be part of it this weekend as well. So, yeah, that's a plus.
- Thanks for watching Yahoo Finance's coverage leading up to the Super Bowl. Be sure to tune in on the days following the big game as we break down the numbers that don't show up in the box score but may impact your wallet. Enjoy the game.
