Coinbase Brings Backstreet Boys Energy to the Super Bowl

Crypto News Exchanges

Coinbase Brings Backstreet Boys Energy to Super Bowl Spotlight

Written by Aaron S.,

Editor-In-Chief

Last Updated: February 09, 2026

Key Takeaways

Coinbase used a Backstreet Boys karaoke theme for its Super Bowl return and replaced the 2022 QR-code concept;
Viewers reacted in mixed ways, with some criticism and some praise for the ad’s simple format;
Coinbase leadership defended the choice and said a memorable idea helps a brand stand out during crowded breaks.

Stop overpaying - start transferring money with Ogvio. Sign up, invite friends & grab Rewards now! 🎁

Coinbase Brings Backstreet Boys Energy to Super Bowl Spotlight

BITDEGREE IN YOUR SOCIAL FEED

Coinbase $1.46B returned to the Super Bowl with a new idea that relied on a pop song instead of a flashy visual trick.

The company chose a Backstreet Boys karaoke theme and moved away from the QR-code concept that drew so much attention in 2022.

The commercial ran for one minute and showed animated text with lines from the 1997 Backstreet Boys song “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back)".

What is Ethereum 2.0? Upgrades Easily Explained With Animations

Did you know?

Want to get smarter & wealthier with crypto?

Subscribe - We publish new crypto explainer videos every week!

Marketing chief Catherine Ferdon said that the goal was to “bring people together for a shared experience that highlights how the crypto community has grown".

The link drew so many visits that the website went down. Reports said it received around 20 million hits in a single minute.

Some people on X criticized the ad. A few connected their comments to the market downturn and political ties within the crypto industry. Coinbase responded to one critic on X by saying, “If you're talking about it, it worked".

Ethereum ETH $2,021.48 Foundation engineer Chase Wright said, “Half of the people at the party I was at were singing along and laughed when it was Coinbase".

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong stated in a post on X that most viewers only pay partial attention during commercial breaks and that a message needs something distinct to stand out.

Meanwhile, Anthropic used Super Bowl ads to highlight concerns about chatbot advertising and to contrast its own approach to Claude. What did the ads show? Read the full story.