Super Bowl 54 Broadcast Will Feature Fewer, Longer Commercial Breaks

The broadcast of Super Bowl 54 is going to feature fewer commercials, but NFL fans can expect those breaks to run longer than in past years, according to a report from John Ourand of the Sports Business Daily (h/t Alaa Abdeldaiem of SI.com).

"For several years now, we have been working with our broadcast partners to make changes to our game broadcasts that are intended to improve the viewing experience," the NFL's vice president of broadcasting, Cathy Yancy, said. "We've seen positive results from these efforts."

Abdeldaiem noted that the league has already instituted similar changes for its other postseason games in recent years.

It's unlikely that fans will notice a major change in the viewing experience. Per Ourand, "The NFL and Fox will run four ad breaks per quarter instead of the five they had run for the past three decades."

The participating teams, however, may appreciate the change:

The overall ad time and number of advertisements run during the game aren't expected to change in any significant way, so fans of the commercials during the game can breathe easy.

"Together with the NFL, we are always looking to improve the product, and the league's research has proven that fewer breaks will optimize the viewing experience," Fox's executive vice president for sports ad sales, Seth Winter, told Alexandra Bruell of the Wall Street Journal

"As it relates to Super Bowl LIV, the game has always been the pinnacle of long-form creative storytelling, and we are excited to see what advertisers produce."