*By Chloe Aiello* Julian Edelman might be the MVP of the Super Bowl, but the #MVP award for Super Bowl brands goes to Planters' Mr. Peanut. And the Patriots may have actually won the Big Game, but the trophy for best advertisement went to Verizon or Bud Light ー depending on the audience. While the products these brands were peddling could not have been more different, one thing they all had in common was that their ad strategies went way beyond a pricey game-time TV spot to also engage potential customers online. "One of the things we did see with brands over the Super Bowl were the ones with the highest mentions and the biggest buzz were the ones that sort of carried the advertising conversation online," Salesforce ($CRM) Vice President of Product Marketing Rob Begg told Cheddar on Monday. Salesforce [ranked Super Bowl advertisers](https://www.salesforce.com/company/news-press/stories/2019/02/020419-f/) by global mentions on Twitter ($TWTR) and found Bud Light and its "Game of Thrones"-themed ads topped the list of most buzzed about brands, followed closely by Pepsi, Budweiser, Doritos, and Avocados from Mexico. "Bud Light mirrored what was happening on the screen with what was happening on Twitter ー the same thing with Avocados from Mexico," Begg said. Twitter also recognized Bud Light as the #Blitz award winner in its #BrandBowl for having the highest velocity of tweets per minute during the game, related to its "Game of Thrones" commercial. But by Twitter's metrics, Mr. Peanut won the #MVP award for generating the most brand-related tweets during the Big Game. "They ran a really smart sweepstakes on Twitter and were giving things away during the game. Their first giveaway was a $10,000 cash prize in a Planters can and they continue that conversation throughout the game, which is really smart," Ryan Oliver, Twitter head of brand strategy, told Cheddar. Twitter's #QuarterBack award, which recognized most retweets on a single tweet, went to Marvel for [its "Avengers: Endgame" spot tweet](https://twitter.com/MarvelStudios/status/1092203843071270912), which currently has about 90,000 retweets. Franks Red Hot won the #Interception award for having the highest percentage of brand conversation without running a national spot. And #VideoReplay, or the award for the brand with the most video views on a single tweet, went to Verizon ($VZ), for its "The Team That Wouldn't Be Here," commercial that featured 12 NFL players who owe their lives to first responders. [That video](https://twitter.com/verizon/status/1092206795110731776) currently has more than 18.8 million views on Twitter. Verizon also stole the spotlight on YouTube. Vice President Tara Walpert Levy said it generated the most game day views, followed closely by Amazon's "Not Everything Makes the Cut" commercial that showed failed Alexa applications, and Jeep's "Big Game Blitz" rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner with OneRepublic. "We saw a lot of people watching ads again or for the first time during the game, Walpert Levy said. "We saw strong interest in purpose-driven ads and humor-driven ads." Even as preliminary ratings coming out of CBS tease a downward trend in viewership for the biggest night in U.S. sports, overall advertisement viewership on YouTube surged 58 percent since last year, and 78 percent on mobile. That may be bad news for networks, but a proliferation of viewership and engagement across multiple platforms is good for sports, Walpert Levy said. "I think what that does overall is quite good for sports even if it means it's spread across a more fragmented set of players offering that content. People are engaging more with sports than ever before and a broader viewer set is involved," she said. For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/youtube-recaps-biggest-super-bowl-ads).

Share:
More In Sports
PGA Tour Player Suspensions in LIV Golf Event Is About 'Threat to the Future of Golf'
The PGA Tour has announced that it will suspend players that are competing in the LIV Golf event that teed off today. At least 17 players, including names like Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, and Sergio Garcia are banned from the PGA Tour competition. Hilary Fordwich, a business analyst and golf expert, joined Cheddar News to discuss why the PGA had to go this route. This is a threat to the future of golf for them, and there's been many contentions about them not being fair and that this is vindictive," she said. "Don't forget, of course, they represent sort of a monopoly in the history of golf. So you've got two sides to this story. You've got those the purists, those that feel that golf should only be a certain way and that there are only these limited events that the PGA puts on. And then you've got other people who are saying … this is all about money"
Pressure to Settle $1 Billion Claim From Nassar Survivors Against FBI
Survivors of Larry Nassar, including Olympian Simone Biles, are seeking $1 billion in damages from the FBI due to its failure to investigate the former gymnastics team doctor convicted of committing years of serial sexual abuse of minors. Jack Queen, a senior reporter at Law360, joined Cheddar News to break down the legal grounds of this case. "This is one of the biggest black eyes that the Bureau has faced in generations, quite frankly, and the FBI has taken full responsibility and admitted that it completely botched this investigation," he said. "So, there's a lot of pressure to settle."
Gymnasts Seek $1 Billion From FBI Over Larry Nassar Case
The victims from the USA gymnastics sexual abuse scandal continue to seek justice. Survivors of Larry Nassar are seeking more than one-billion dollars from the FBI for failing to stop the convicted sports doctor when the agency first received allegations. According to a report released by the Justice Department's Inspector General, FBI agents knew in July of 2015 that Nassar was accused of abusing gymnasts; however, Nassar wasn't arrested until December of 2016. The group that filed the claim includes Olympic medalist Simone Biles and around 90 other women. Louise Radnofsky, sports reporter at The Wall Street Journal, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Saudi-Backed LIV Golf Tour Begins With Dustin Johnson & Phil Mickelson, Without Tiger Woods
A controversial professional golf tour backed by Saudi Arabia tees off on Thursday. Today, two-time Major winner Dustin Johnson announced he's resigned from the PGA Tour ahead of headlining the Saudi-backed tour, called the LIV Golf Invitation Series. The announcement comes as the PGA tour has threatened disciplinary action for its golfers who take part in the Saudi golf league event, which will also feature notable golf stars like Phil Mickelson and Sergio Garcia; however, LIV Golf's CEO, Greg Norman, told The Washington Post that Tiger Woods rejected a contract worth 'high nine digits' to play in the tour. Chris Bumbaca, reporter for USA Today Sports, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Re-Wiring After a Career in the NFL
Marques Ogden, former NFL offensive lineman turned author and celebrity success coach, joins Cheddar to discuss his career transition after his NFL playing days and how he overcame a low point to prioritize family and re-shape his life as a success coach.
Load More