Coinbase’s Super Bowl ad taps Backstreet Boys, divides opinion
Coinbase returned to the Super Bowl with a one-minute television spot modeled on a Backstreet Boys karaoke theme, four years after its viral QR code commercial. The ad aired during the most-watched sporting event in the United States.
The spot primarily displayed animated text of lyrics from the Backstreet Boys’ 1997 single “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back).” Coinbase Chief Marketing Officer Catherine Ferdon said in a statement that the campaign sought to create a shared moment that reflects how the crypto community has expanded.
It marked Coinbase’s first Super Bowl placement since 2022, when the exchange ran a 60-second commercial featuring a color-shifting QR code bouncing on screen like a DVD screensaver. The code linked to a sign-up offer for $15 in Bitcoin (BTC), drawing such heavy traffic that the website temporarily crashed and reportedly received 20 million hits in one minute.
Mixed reaction to new spot; Coinbase says attention was the goal
Reaction on X was divided. Some users said the commercial drew boos amid a market downturn and criticism of crypto’s ties to the Trump administration, while others praised its simplicity and memorability. Responding to a post calling the ad “terrible,” Coinbase wrote on X, “If you’re talking about it, it worked.”
One X user said a room “ERUPTED in boos” upon realizing it was a Coinbase ad. Axios reporter Andrew Solender wrote that a room he was in “burst into groans and shouts of ‘fuck you’” after it aired. By contrast, Ethereum Foundation engineer Chase Wright said about half the guests at his gathering sang along and laughed when Coinbase was revealed. Another X user called the execution “lowkey genius,” arguing viewers would “100% remember Coinbase” if they decide to buy crypto.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong defended the approach on X, noting that most people only partly watch commercials in loud, crowded environments and that it takes something distinctive to break through.
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