Nike made a statement by running its first Super Bowl ad since 1998, spotlighting female athletes in a high-profile campaign titled “So Win”—an ad which has got everyone talking.

• The three-minute spot, narrated by Grammy Award-winning artist Doechii, featured stars like Caitlin Clark, Sha’Carri Richardson, A’ja Wilson, and Sabrina Ionescu, challenging long-held stereotypes about female athletes.

• It was a bold return to the Super Bowl stage, with Nike flexing its $4.3 billion marketing budget, outspending competitors to dominate one of the biggest moments on the sporting calendar.

• The ad drew comparisons to Nike’s “Winning Isn’t For Everyone” campaign from the 2021 Olympics, which also leaned into grit, perseverance, and defying doubters.

• However, some critics pushed back, arguing that the “So Win” tagline reinforced an outdated burden on women to keep fighting uphill battles instead of shifting the focus toward structural change.

Why It Matters:

Nike’s decision to invest in a women’s sports-led Super Bowl ad is a landmark moment for visibility, showing that female athletes not only deserve—but command—the biggest platforms in sports marketing.

Whether the messaging resonated with all audiences or not, the hope is that this sets a precedent for other brands to step up their investment in women’s sports rather than treating it as an afterthought.