Microsoft's Super Bowl Spot Ranked 'Most Emotionally Effective'
AdweekSuper Bowl:
Katie Sowers
Microsoft + NFLHistory is made on Super Bowl Sunday. Little boys and little girls dream of someday being on the field as a player or a coach. And on February 2, 2020, Katie Sowers fulfilled her dream by becoming the first female in history to coach in a Super Bowl.
But this project didn’t start off as a Super Bowl brief. As part of Microsoft’s ongoing partnership with the NFL, all we had to do was sell a laptop. Watch the :30 spot that started it all here.
When we heard Katie’s story we had to tell it. And when the San Francisco 49ers made it to the big game, we had to mark that moment in history with a piece of film that lived up to her historic journey. It wasn’t the press attention that made it worth it, it was seeing the reactions from all the other girls who share Katie’s dream.
Directed by Peter Berg.
But this project didn’t start off as a Super Bowl brief. As part of Microsoft’s ongoing partnership with the NFL, all we had to do was sell a laptop. Watch the :30 spot that started it all here.
When we heard Katie’s story we had to tell it. And when the San Francisco 49ers made it to the big game, we had to mark that moment in history with a piece of film that lived up to her historic journey. It wasn’t the press attention that made it worth it, it was seeing the reactions from all the other girls who share Katie’s dream.
Directed by Peter Berg.
The campaign sparked a national conversation, inspired young girls to dream big, and even introduced tools to help eliminate bias—like correcting “female coach” in Word. With over 1.4 billion impressions and $27 million in earned media, it ranked in USA TODAY’s Top 10 and was named the most emotionally effective ad of the game. Most importantly, it helped pave the way for more women in the NFL, proving that it only takes one to make a difference.
