Wondering what the metaverse is? Well, you might get your first sneak peek of it at this year’s Super Bowl. Many people may be focused on who will win (I think the Bengals and Rams are playing?), but quite a few people, myself included, will be watching for the brand activations that involve crypto, NFTs, and web3 this year’s Super Bowl.

How did we end up here? Quick explainer.

2021 was huge for “web3”. What is web3? Chris Dixon, a partner at A16Z, one of the leading VC firms in the space, explained it well. The excerpt below is from his post. (Emphasis added)

Web1 (roughly 1990–2005) was about open protocols that were decentralized and community-governed — most of the value accrued to the edges of the network — users and builders.

Web2 (roughly 2005–2020) was about siloed, centralized services run by corporations. Most of the value accrued to a handful of companies like Google, Apple, Amazon, and Facebook.

We are now at the beginning of the web3 era, which combines the decentralized, community-governed ethos of web1 with the advanced, modern functionality of web2.

Web3 is the internet owned by the builders and users, orchestrated with tokens.

2021 ushered in the use of NFT’s or non-fungible tokens. NFT’s are digital assets that can be owned by the user, courtesy of the decentralized blockchain. NFT’s have been around for a while, but in 2021 they found their “somewhat” mainstream legs. There are a variety of NFT’s, ranging from collectibles, game props, redeemable physical goods, identity, or even decentralized storage. Just how significant is this market? In 2021, approximately $40 billion (that’s billion with a b) of transactions were processed across some of the top NFT marketplaces, one of them primarily being OpenSea. Brands have recognized the opportunity here, and they are coming out in full force for Super Bowl LVI. Jeremiah Owyang, a technology analyst and thought leader in the web3 space, did a great job of sizing up the market below.

Without further adieu, here is my ongoing summary of all the ways web3, crypto, and NFTs are making an appearance at this year’s Super Bowl. [Last updated 6:26 pm PT]

• Coinbase and Coinbase NFT marketplace
  • What is it?
    • Coinbase has been teasing out their new marketplace ahead of this. Their CEO, Brian Armstrong, has teased out something happened during the Super Bowl.
  • What should I do?
    • Keep an eye out on their Twitter and turn on notifications for @Coinbase_NFT and @Coinbase
    • Coinbase did drop a special promo at drops.coinbase.com. New users= $15 USD in Bitcoin and existing users, $3M potential prizes.
  • FTX
    • What is it?
      • FTX is a crypto exchange. They have a confirmed Super Bowl spot and they’ve shared that they’ll be giving out free Bitcoin today.
    • What should I do?
      • Visit this tweet and retweet it for a chance to win free crypto. (waiting for the link to go live to retweet)
• Binance
  • What is it?
    • Binance is one of the worlds largest crypto exchanges; they have announced that they’ll be doing a commercial focused on doing your own research on projects. Rumored to be giving away a POAP through the site www.cryptocelebalert.com
  • What should I do?
    • Visit this site and click on the claim button when you see a celebrity promoting a crypto project.
• Budlight
  • What is it?
    • They are a beer brand and they dropped an NFT for $399 USD earlier this week. Owners will be able to claim a physical pair of glasses that are the same design as NounsDAO.
  • What should I do?
    • Nothing unless you were able to claim one ahead of time.

• eToro
  • What is it?
    • FTX is a crypto exchange. They have a confirmed Super Bowl spot and they’ve shared that they’ll be giving out free Bitcoin today.
  • What should I do?
    • During the commercials, keep an eye out for a URL or QR code to claim new crypto. The ad will most likely focus on new users.
  • Miller Lite
    • What is it?
      • Miller Lite opted to not do a Super Bowl ad and instead, do a fully virtual bar in Decentraland. More from their team here.
    • What should I do?
      • Visit their Decentraland bar at the above link and claim a free POAP.
• Crypto.com
  • What is it?
    • Crypto.com is a crypto exchange. They’ve struck up notable partnerships with the likes of folks with Matt Damon and others.
  • What should I do?
    • Update: they’ve posted a YouTube link of their commercial and it has a QR code Easter Egg. You can find the link here.
• BitBuy
  • What is it?
    • Canadian-based exchange BitBuy is spending roughly 25% of their ad budget to promote their exchange during the Super Bowl. Blockworks reported this from an interview with their marketing director.
  • What should I do?
    • Nothing right now, but stay tuned here for links.
• TurboTax
  • What is it?
    • Tax platform. They made mention of crypto taxes in their commercial.
  • What should I do?
    • No drop, but you should familiarize yourself with crypto-related taxes.

Full matrix here. Huge thanks to Taylor Stein for helping after hours on some of the data scraping. Credit to AdAge for some of the base content.