Dove is making a comeback to the Super Bowl after an 18-year hiatus

Unilever beauty brand Dove has announced its return to Super Bowl in a TV commercial for 2024. The ad's core message revolves around #KeepHerConfident, aligning with Dove's collaboration with Nike to introduce Body Confident Sport—a suite of resources aimed at nurturing body confidence among girls aged 11 to 17.

Leandro Barreto, senior vice president of Dove's global master brand, emphasized Dove's commitment: "Our aim is to transform sports into an inclusive space where every girl feels empowered and accepted. The prevalent negative body dialogue in sports, emphasizing appearance over capability, adversely affects girls' self-assurance."

Scheduled to air during the game's first quarter, the 30-second spot signifies Dove's significant return to the Super Bowl since its last appearance in 2006. Notably, Dove Men + Care, the brand's male-oriented product line, was previously highlighted in a product-centric Super Bowl ad back in 2013.

The Super Bowl spot is the latest iteration of the long-running Dove Self-Esteem Project, which the brand claims has reached more than 100 million young people since its 2004 launch and is on track to reach 250 million young people by 2030. The Body Confident Sport initiative was announced in October and is billed by the companies as a first-of-its-kind and scientifically-proven set of coaching tools. It was informed by research that 45% of teenage girls globally drop out of sports due to low body confidence.

Dove has remained committed to its purpose-driven initiatives, aligning with a broader trend among marketers, including its parent company, Unilever, who are reevaluating their brand strategies. Unilever's CEO, Hein Schumacher, emphasized during an October earnings call that successful purpose-driven brands like Dove would be supported in incorporating this approach into their brand offerings. However, he also clarified that Unilever wouldn't impose a purpose-driven approach on its entire portfolio.

During the upcoming game day, Dove will be accompanied by its sister brand, Hellmann's Mayonnaise, showcasing the latter's ongoing "Make Taste, Not Waste" initiative—a central theme in previous game day advertisements.