2026 Big Game Advertising Highlights with Kellogg Professor Tim Calkins

With the cost of a :30-spot at $8 million, we cannot wait to see what the brands have in store for us during the the big game. Join this one-of-a-kind virtual, lunchtime session to review the best and worst ads with fellow marketers at our Brand Special Interest Group’s special edition of the Big Game Ads Round-Up led by Tim Calkins.

This game is the biggest marketing event of the year. For over 20 years, students and faculty at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management have been evaluating the spots. Which ones worked? Which ones fell short? In this program, Professor Tim Calkins will review highlights from the 2026 big game, including ads that scored particularly well with the Kellogg panel. You can share your thoughts, too; this is an interactive session. The program will conclude with a set of learnings from this year’s game that marketers can use as they manage their own brands.

This event is for active AMA Chicago members only. You do not need to belong to a Special Interest Group (SIG) to attend.

Our Speaker

Tim Calkins
Associate Chair, Marketing Department
Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management

Tim Calkins helps people and organizations build strong brands. In addition to consulting and speaking, he is an award-winning marketing professor and author (his latest book is How to Wash a Chicken — Mastering the Business Presentation). Tim maintains a brand strategy blog, hailed by Inc. as one of “Six Blogs That Can Teach You More Than an MBA.” His recent clients include Moderna, Eli Lilly, Caterpillar and AbbVie.

Tim’s LinkedIn