A Multimodal Analysis of Uber Eats, Coca-Cola, and Haagen-Dazs Commercials during the Super Bowl LIX 2025 Event

Abstract

The Super Bowl has become a major advertising platform in which commercials often rival the game in public interest due to their emotional and visual appeal. Despite being globally recognized and investing millions in high-profile ads, Uber Eats, Coca-Cola, and Haagen-Dazs received surprisingly low engagement scores during the 2025 Super Bowl. This gap between brand power and audience response raises concerns about the effectiveness of their multimodal advertising strategies. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the visual and verbal elements represented in the Uber Eats, Coca-Cola, and Haagen-Dazs commercials of the Super Bowl LIX 2025 event. The objective is achieved through the application of two theories: Kress & van Leeuwen’s visual grammar and Halliday & Matthiessen’s systemic functional linguistics. This study utilizes a descriptive qualitative research design by Creswell. The analysis primarily focuses on the scene image and dialogue from each commercial. The research findings contribute three main problem statements. Firstly, the research identifies the visual elements through the process type of narrative structure and interactive meaning in terms of contact, social distance, and attitude. Secondly, the research identifies the verbal elements through the transitivity process and mood. Lastly, the research reveals how the visual and verbal elements work together to form a cohesive message. Furthermore, the research provides the reasons behind the low engagement index of the commercials.