The dust has settled in Santa Clara, California, following Super Bowl LX, where the Seattle Seahawks claimed their second Lombardi Trophy with a decisive 29-13 victory over the New England Patriots. While the action on the field at Levi’s Stadium was a defensive masterclass, the real story for the sports business world lies in the numbers off the field specifically, a historic divergence between the game itself and its halftime entertainment.
Here is a breakdown of Super Bowl LX from a sports business perspective.
The Game: Defense Wins Championships (But Maybe Not Ratings)
On the field, the Seahawks stifled the Patriots, denying New England a seventh title. Running back Kenneth Walker III took home MVP honors, rushing for 135 yards and powering an offense that did just enough to support a smothering defense.
However, from a broadcast perspective, the game faced a unique challenge. Coming off a record-setting 2025 Super Bowl (which drew 127.7 million viewers), early post-game reports suggest the average viewership for the game itself may have dipped to approximately 114.8 million. Analysts point to a less “star-studded” quarterback matchup (Sam Darnold vs. Drake Maye) compared to previous years and a game script that was largely controlled by defense rather than high-scoring fireworks.
The “Benito Bowl” Effect: Halftime is the New Primetime
In a stunning twist, the Apple Music Halftime Show headlined by Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny (Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio) appears to have eclipsed the game itself. Reports indicate the halftime show shattered records, drawing an estimated 135.4 million viewers.
This marks a significant shift in sports consumption. Bad Bunny, joined by guests Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin, delivered a largely Spanish-language performance that tapped into a massive, underserved global and Latino demographic. For advertisers and the NFL, this validates the strategy of diversifying entertainment to broaden the tent beyond traditional football fans. The “Benito Bowl” proved that for a significant portion of the audience, the concert was the main event.
The $10 Million Question: Advertising Economics
Despite the potential dip in average game viewership, the Super Bowl remains the undisputed king of ad inventory.
- Cost: 30-second spots sold for a record $8 million to $10 million.
- Strategy: With the game’s audience skewing slightly lower but the halftime audience surging, brands that positioned themselves around the halftime break likely saw the highest ROI.
- Tech & AI: The commercial breaks were dominated by Artificial Intelligence companies and tech giants, signaling the sector’s aggressive push for mainstream consumer adoption.
Ticket Prices and the Bay Area Boom
The economics of attending the game remained stratospheric, though volatile.
- Ticket Prices: “Get-in” prices on the secondary market hovered around $4,350 in the days leading up to kickoff, with the median price sitting near $6,200.
- Local Impact: The Bay Area Host Committee projected an economic impact of between $370 million and $630 million for the region. This windfall comes from visitor spending on hotels, dining, and transportation, though economists often debate the long-term “multiplier effect” of such mega-events.
What This Means for the Future
Super Bowl LX has set a new precedent. The NFL is no longer just selling a football game; it is selling a cultural festival where the music can outshine the sport. For future host cities and broadcasters, the lesson is clear: The “casual” fan is now the most valuable demographic, and catering to global pop culture trends is as important as the matchup on the gridiron.
As the NFL looks toward Super Bowl LXI in Los Angeles next year, the league will likely double down on this “entertainment-first” model, ensuring that even if the game is a blowout, the business remains undefeated.
