State Farm pulled its commercial from next month's Super Bowl broadcast after receiving fierce criticism following the outbreak of the Los Angeles wildfires.
America's top insurance company has sparked anger among California homeowners this month amid fires, which have destroyed thousands of homes and killed about 25 people.
Just months before the devastating inferno broke out, State Farm made the controversial decision to revoke fire coverage for tens of thousands of residents in the state, leaving many in a state of crisis after their properties were reduced to rubble. .
Several Hollywood stars have publicly criticized the insurer for the cancellations, including comedian Rob Schneider, who angrily called them a “bunch of crap.”
And amid the outrage, State Farm abandoned its plan to run a commercial during Super Bowl LIX, which will take place on February 9 at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
Reports earlier this year suggested that broadcasters Fox were charging $7 million per 30-second ad during the game. It's unclear whether State Farm had already paid that fee before it opted to back out.
State Farm pulled its ad from next month's Super Bowl broadcast amid the Los Angeles wildfires.
The insurance company has sparked outrage for canceling fire policies before inferno broke out.
“State Farm, State Farm agents and our employees are all focused on helping customers affected by the Southern California wildfires in the midst of this tragedy,” the company said in a statement after the humiliating U-turn.
'State Farm serves more than 8 million customers in California, more than any other insurer, and we've been doing it for nearly 100 years. Our claims force is the largest in the industry, and we are bringing the full scale and strength of our disaster response teams to help customers recover, whether they are in Los Angeles or across the country.
'We are proud to report that our customer contact is 90%. We've received more than 7,400 home and auto claims, and we're putting tens of millions of dollars back into customers' hands. These numbers will continue to rise as residents return and assess the damage.
'Our focus is firmly on supporting the people of Los Angeles. “We will not be advertising during the game as originally planned.”
The decision undoubtedly represents a significant financial blow for State Farm, given that the Super Bowl is the most watched annual event on television, with an average of more than 123 million viewers tuning in to last year's game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco. 49ers.
CBS, which aired last year's showpiece, is said to have charged $6.47 million for 30-second commercial spots.
State Farm ran an ad featuring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito during the 2024 Super Bowl, which won USA Today's annual popularity contest.
State Farm insists its 'focus is firmly on supporting the people of Los Angeles'
The company's 2024 Super Bowl ad featured Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito
The Super Bowl is the most-watched annual television event, with 123 million viewers last year.
According to the Wall Street JournalThe insurer has spent $23.2 million on national linear television since Jan. 1; including $12.2 million in NFL playoff games from Jan. 11-13, which regularly draw some of the largest television audiences after the Super Bowl.
You've also likely already spent a significant amount of money and time filming a commercial ahead of this year's Super Bowl in just over three weeks.
Other companies still prepared to run ads during the game include snack food marketers Pringles and Reese's, as well as domain name seller GoDaddy.
State Farm is still expected to air commercials during the next two rounds of the NFL playoffs, including this weekend's Divisional Round.