Why Tim Hortons went with a hockey theme for its Super Bowl spot

Who: Tim Hortons with Gut for creative and strategy; PHD for media; Grayson Music for audio (music director Lowell Sostomi); The Vanity for VFX.   

What: “The Good Ol’ Football Game,” a Super Bowl spot with a distinctly patriotic message: football is great, but hockey is still the “best game you can name.” The pro-Canadian message may feel pointed amid rising tensions with the U.S., but it’s not meant to be political.   

When & Where: The 30-second ad was created just for the Super Bowl and will run once pre-game and again during the game. It has also been posted to social channels.  

Why: While the ad undoubtedly has extra resonance amid a surge in “buy Canadian” patriotism—spurred by a possible trade war with the U.S.—and has the look of a quickly made spot, it was already in development before Donald Trump set a date to introduce punishing 25% duties on most Canadian imports late last week.  

“It wasn’t a tariff brief,” said chief marketing officer Hope Bagozzi. However, it was quickly conceived, approved, and created last month. 

Tim Hortons began working with PHD as its media agency in early January. “Their first gift to us was, ‘Hey, we've got a couple of opportunities for the Super Bowl for you guys,” said Bagozzi. That, not the possible trade war, was the catalyst of the spot. 

At first, the spot, with its instantly recognisable tune, seems simply like it will be about how great football is (hat tip to the writers for slipping in a winking reference to Taylor Swift’s boyfriend). 

But 20 seconds in, an all-important lyric change reveals the real message: “And the good ol’ football game is the SECOND best game you can name.” 

The spot closes with the super: “Sorry, not sorry. We’re proudly Canadian.” 

The ad was meant to be cheeky and playful, said Bagozzi.

“It's not to say there's no room for us to love lots of different sports, but for our brand that a hockey player founded, and for how deep we are with hockey roots, it just makes sense for Tim's,” she said. “It's a little playful to say our favourite game is hockey, but hey, we're here watching this big football game together as well.”

Good timing: Tim Hortons has long made its Canadianness a cornerstone of its marketing and advertising in Canada. In the past week, as calls increased for Canadians to think carefully about what brands they shop for in response to Trump’s tariff threats, some more ardent economic nationalists pointed out that as Canadian as it looks and feels, Tim’s is owned by Restaurant Brands International, an American-Canadian multinational (with a large chunk owned by Brazilian company 3G). 

On her LinkedIn profile on Wednesday, Bagozzi posted: “Tim Hortons is Canadian, built by Canadians, and for Canadians. The foundation of our company, including our owners, suppliers and our guests, have always represented the true Canadian heart of Tims.”

But Tim Hortons briefed Gut in early January, just after PHD brought them the Super Bowl opportunity, and Gut presented the idea a couple of weeks ago. Trump had raised the possibility of tariffs by then, but it wasn’t until late last week, the threats from the ummmm… mercurial president seemed like a real possibility. 

Those threats and Trump’s rhetoric certainly give the ad extra resonance, and Tim Horton’s is happy about that, even if it wasn’t intentional. A bit more Canadian pride is a “good thing,” said Bagozi, and because of that, the ad's theme is “more relevant than ever.”

And we quote: "So, when we thought about how to celebrate this weekend, we knew this was the perfect time to remind everyone that while we like football, Canadian culture is unique and that will never change. And even when we cheer for football, hockey is still the best game you can name." — Hope Bagozzi in the release introducing the new spot.