Football: Name of the Game for Latest Most-Seen TV Ads

With both the NFL and college football regular seasons now under way, automakers wasted no time activating around the on-field action. College football in particular was a priority, with all of the top five ads on iSpot.tv’s latest ranking airing during week’s games. 

Jeep’s “Make the Most” takes first place with 207.2 million national TV ad impressions, 18% of which came from NFL games, while college football delivered another 7%. CBS was the top network by impressions (18%), followed by NBC (17%) and Fox (12%). 

The No.2 ad for the Lexus RX features two parents relishing their newfound freedom after dropping off their daughter for college. This playful spin on a big life moment resonated with audiences, with the spot performing above average for attention, likeability, watchability, desire and relevance, according to iSpot’s Creative Assessment. College football delivered the widest reach, accounting for 18% of the spot’s total 186.1 million national TV ad impressions. Top networks included ESPN2 (15%) and ESPN (14%). 

Ram Trucks takes third place with a spot for the 2025 Ram 1500 that received 167.9 million national TV ad impressions. Top programming included college football (22% of impressions), the NFL (10%) and Big Brother (6%). Notably, this commercial had a 93% brand match (the percentage of survey respondents who remembered it was a Ram Trucks ad after watching it), above the recent automotive industry norm of 76%.

Of the top five ads on the chart, GMC’s leaned into football the most. A whopping 81% of its total 124.5 million national TV ad impressions came from football games – 54% from the NFL and 27% from college football games. Football-related programming including Fox NFL Sunday and Big Noon Kickoff also contributed additional reach. Per iSpot’s Creative Assessment, 27% of surveyed viewers cited the product itself (the 2024 Hummer EV) as the “single best thing” about the ad. 

Kia addresses football fandom head-on in its fifth-place spot, proclaiming that its Carnival Turbo Hybrid model “is built for all the things you’ve yet to do – like taking a long drive just to throw a monster tailgate party at an away game.” While college football games delivered 10% of the spot’s total 112.7 million impressions, wider reach came from America’s Got Talent (17%). 

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1. Jeep: Make the Most 

Impressions: 207,167,139  

Interruption Rate: 3.20%

Attention Index: 111

Est. National TV Ad Spend: $3,072,591

2. Lexus: Free

Impressions: 186,117,741 

Interruption Rate: 2.14%

Attention Index: 93

Est. National TV Ad Spend: $834,914

3. Ram Trucks: The Calling: Blessed 

Impressions: 167,863,017  

Interruption Rate: 3.57%

Attention Index: 90

Est. National TV Ad Spend: $1,815,791

4. GMC: The Time Has Come 

Impressions: 124,534,754   

Interruption Rate: 2.13%

Attention Index: 151

Est. National TV Ad Spend: $3,141,579

5. Kia: VIP Lounge Seating

Impressions: 112,731,773    

Interruption Rate: 4.03%

Attention Index: 90

Est. National TV Ad Spend: $858,455

Data provided by iSpot.tv, The New Standard for TV Ad Measurement

TV Impressions - Total TV ad impressions delivered for the brand or spot.

Interruption Rate - The percentage of devices that were present at the beginning of the ad but did not complete watching the ad. Actions that interrupt ad play include changing the channel, pulling up the guide, fast-forwarding or turning off the TV. The Interruption Rate is measured on a scale of 0 to 100%.

Attention Index - A comparison of the ad’s Interruption rate against its specific media placement. The Attention Index is measured on a scale of 0 to 200, where 100 is the average and means the ad is performing as expected.

Est. National TV Spend - Amount spent on TV airings for the brand’s spots.