Brands can gain exposure during high-value sports events without paying steep prices for traditional airtime. This was how Guess Fragrances used data and digital savvy to reach US-based NFL fans during last season’s playoffs.

• Disney’s asking price for a 30-second Super Bowl ad to run during next year's game is $10 million, per Variety. Meanwhile, sports fans are turning to second screens while watching live sports, creating an opportunity for lower-cost impressions.

Nearly 6 in 10 (59%) World Cup fans said they would be watching second screens for FIFA World Cup 2026, per a July 2025 ThinkNow Research survey.

Guess Fragrances took this second-screen strategy to NFL fans during last season’s NFL playoffs with a targeted campaign managed by TripleLift and StackAdapt, in collaboration with Guess Fragrances’ media agency, OPR.

As the new NFL season approaches, more brands are likely to capitalize on this affordable alternative, reaching fans through the second screen on mobile devices.

Reaching the right fans

The Guess Fragrance digital campaign, which promoted Guess Fragrances’ Men's Iconic Eau de Parfum Spray, used native video ads on premium publishers to reach key fan segments during the NFL playoffs. StackAdapt’s programmatic platform teamed up with TripleLift’s premium native video inventory and audience segments to serve video ads to the right fans.

The campaign used two segments identified by TripleLift: Super Bowl fans and sports fans. Video ads were shown to these segments in the three weeks leading up to Super Bowl LX, and two weeks after the big game.

Short video ads combined moving images of footballs with a Guess perfume bottle. The aim was to reach fans on key websites while they looked at their second screen during NFL playoffs.

“Either you have the budget or you do something differently and smartly, and we chose to have StackAdapt work with TripleLift, achieving outcomes for Guess,” said Prune Nouvion, TripleLift’s country manager of France. “The outcome was to have high CTR and CPM in a very competitive stage of the season.”

Showing up on the second screen

Instead of paying for traditional TV spots, Guess Fragrances connected with fans on the second screen, the phone they hold while watching games on the TV.

Native video on publishers like Men’s Health engaged football fans during this key period of the season.

Mobile will make up 91.1% of US native display advertising this year, per EMARKETER’s forecast.

“What we can see now is that fans are not just watching one screen,” said Matthieu Minaud, StackAdapt’s sales director and country lead. “Everyone watching TV or CTV (connected TV) also has a mobile [phone]. They are checking comments [during the game], so there is always a multi-screen approach… We used the additional layer, the additional screen, to reach this audience.”

Finding value on native video

Throughout the five-week digital campaign during the playoffs, Guess Fragrances kept to native video on premium publishers to meet campaign goals. There was no social media or CTV in the mix.

“The campaign used native video on regular supply,” said Nouvion. “Interestingly, everyone wants to do CTV, but there are also native formats, and in-stream formats [on premium publishers], and at the end of the day, it’s cheaper, and you can have a very big impact as well.”

Even though NFL playoffs are among the most competitive times for advertising supply, TripleLift managed to optimize ad placements to keep costs low, and keep high-value sports fans engaged.

NFL games receive nearly half (47.0%) of live US sports TV ad spending, according to MediaRadar. Ad tech partners, working with the media agency, can help allocate affordable ad placements that reach the right audiences, based on data the DSP has about inventory and viewers.

“It’s not just open internet, it’s open media that’s programmatic,” said Minaud. “DSPs and SSPs help you in reaching audiences where they are. [Audiences] aren’t only on social media, not only on walled gardens. It’s on CTV, it’s on digital out of home, it’s on audio, it’s on the open web. Open media is everywhere.”

This was originally featured in the EMARKETER Daily newsletter. For more marketing insights, statistics, and trends, subscribe here.