You might need heard that the most important soccer recreation of the 12 months occurring this Sunday—that’s “American soccer” for these within the U.Okay. However it’s not simply in regards to the Philadelphia Eagles vs. the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs: The Tremendous Bowl is the most-watched sporting occasion within the U.S. as a lot for the commercials as for the sport.
As tech publications like this one wish to level out, Apple made what is probably essentially the most memorable industrial in Tremendous Bowl historical past approach again in 1984. This usually results in the thought that Apple and the Tremendous Bowl go hand-in-hand, however really, Apple’s historical past with the sport is kind of brief. However nonetheless, yearly we hope Apple makes use of the most important stage to showcase or tease a brand new product. And yearly we’re upset.
However Tremendous Bowl LVII might be totally different. After a 10-year run by Pepsi, Apple Music is sponsoring the Tremendous Bowl halftime present, which is that includes Rihanna’s first main reside look since 2016. Suffice it to say, it is going to be watched by some 100 million folks, one of many largest audiences Apple has ever had. It’s the primary time Apple is sponsoring the present, so we don’t actually know what to anticipate. Will Rihanna be carrying AirPods? Will MacBooks grace the stage? And most significantly, will Apple run an advert through the huge recreation?
Earlier than we get to Sunday, right here’s a historical past of Apple’s Tremendous Bowl advertisements.
1984 (1984)
Apple’s 1984 advert is commonly referred to as the biggest industrial in Tremendous Bowl historical past. Directed by Ridley Scott of “Alien” and “Blade Runner” fame, the 60-second advert solely aired solely as soon as, as the primary industrial going into halftime of Tremendous Bowl XVIII. Its theme was based mostly on George Orwell’s novel, 1984, and the industrial’s bleak, dystopian imagery struck a chord throughout an period of populist conservatism and the Chilly Battle. It was designed to generate hype for the announcement of the Macintosh on January 24, 1984, and it definitely completed its purpose.
Scott’s path left an enduring impression on in style tradition, a lot in order that “Apple” and “Tremendous Bowl” are synonymous–although this advert didn’t function a single Apple product.
Lemmings (1985)
In 1985, Apple–nicely conscious of how efficient 1984 was–aired a second advert throughout Tremendous Bowl XIX. Titled Lemmings, the industrial was directed by Tony Scott, brother of Ridley, and includes a comparable tone to promote a brand new software program suite referred to as Macintosh Workplace, which was designed to attach a Macintosh to a printer and a file server.
The advert tried to seize the tone of 1984 and it undoubtedly left an impression on viewers—simply not the one Apple meant. With a large hype marketing campaign that included seat cushions through the huge recreation and full-page newspaper advertisements warning viewers to skip their fourth-quarter rest room break—Lemmings didn’t sit nicely with viewers. Individuals watching discovered the advert miserable and insulting, and nowhere close to as attractive as 1984.
HAL (1999)
After the Lemmings debacle, 15 years glided by earlier than Apple determined to debut a brand new industrial through the Tremendous Bowl. The advert starred HAL from 2001: A House Odyssey, and with Stanley Kubrick’s blessing, was a part of a theme with the AI antagonist that included the Macworld San Francisco and WWDC keynotes. The advert got here throughout a time when there was rising concern that computer systems would cease working within the new 12 months due to the Y2K bug, since PCs couldn’t perceive the 12 months 2000, and chaos would ensue.
Apple used the advert to advertise the Mac’s immunity to the Y2K bug as a consequence of its skill to grasp years as much as 29,940. Despite the fact that the Y2K bug turned out to be a lot ado about nothing, Apple’s third and remaining Tremendous Bowl advert turned a cult hit amongst followers.
I Fought the Regulation (2004)
Whereas not technically an Apple advert, Pepsi’s 2004 industrial to announce its partnership with iTunes definitely felt like one. That includes a Inexperienced Day cowl of Sonny Curtis’s “I Fought the Regulation,” the advert featured 16 youngsters who had been sued by the RIAA for illegally downloading music from the web throughout Napster’s reputation. Satirically, it’s the one Tremendous Bowl advert right here to really function an Apple product–not an iPod however an iMac G4. The advert and the promotional marketing campaign had been a success and helped propel the iTunes Music Retailer, which was barely a 12 months outdated on the time, to new heights.
Rihanna (2023)
It’s been 24 years for the reason that HAL industrial, and Apple is coming again to the Tremendous Bowl–however this time it’s as the foremost sponsor of the Tremendous Bowl’s present inside a present, the halftime presentation. Apple calls it the Apple Music Tremendous Bowl LVII Halftime Present that includes Rihanna, who hasn’t carried out reside in public since 2018.
Apple has been hyping its presence at Tremendous Bowl LVII all month inside Apple Music’s Rihanna’s Highway to Halftime part, which included:
- Halftime Hype Radio: 10-part sequence that appears again at previous halftime exhibits.
- Rihanna Revisited Radio: Eight-part sequence that displays on Rihanna’s music catalog.
- Stay from Tremendous Bowl LVII: Each day reside broadcasts that “seize the joy” of the sport and the halftime present.
- NFL crew and participant playlists.
- An interview with Rihanna on Apple Music Radio.
There’s additionally a rumor that Apple is making a behind-the-scenes documentary that can air on Apple Music int he coming weeks. And the efficiency will seemingly be out there to stream following the present.
However will there be a brand new Apple advert through the huge recreation as nicely? So far there aren’t any rumors that Apple is operating a industrial, however Apple would in all probability need to preserve such a factor below wraps. Plus, it’s frequent for the halftime present sponsor to run an advert through the Tremendous Bowl—Pepsi, Bridgestone, Dash, AOL, and others all had separate advertisements along with the sponsorship. And Apple has been operating fixed advertisements for Undo Ship in Messages and Apple TV+ through the 2023 Playoffs, so a Tremendous Bowl spot is certainly attainable.
And the timing is true—Ridley Scott’s upcoming movie Napoleon can be airing on Apple TV+ later this 12 months. So possibly Apple received him to direct a follow-up to 1984? We’ll discover out on Sunday.
