LeBron, Howard Reportedly Team For McDonald's Super Bowl Ad

James, Howard Reportedly Film A Throwback Ad To Famous Bird, Jordan Commercial

Cavaliers F LeBron James Monday filmed a commercial with Magic C Dwight Howard and Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird, an ad that reportedly is "for McDonald's and is planned to run during the Super Bowl," according to Brian Windhorst of the Cleveland PLAIN DEALER. The ad allegedly was filmed at Conseco Fieldhouse and is a "throwback to a famous Bird commercial with Michael Jordan where the stars played a game of H-O-R-S-E." The campaign would "signify a significant new sponsorship opportunity for James," who has been in "talks with McDonald's on and off for the last five years." Howard has been "doing McDonald's ads for several years and just signed a new three-year deal" with the QSR, which also has a "long-standing relationship" with Bird. Windhorst noted the spot would be James' third appearance in a Super Bowl spot. He starred in a Bubblicious gum ad in '05 and a State Farm spot during last year's game (CLEVELAND.com, 1/6).

DIFFERENT DELIVERY ROUTE: FedEx is not advertising in the Super Bowl telecast for the second consecutive year after appearing in 11 straight games. FedEx Advertising & Marketing Communications Dir Steve Pacheco said while the company sat out last year's Super Bowl "due to cost constraints" amid the economic recession, there is a "little bit of a different reason" for skipping the '10 game. Pacheco: "There is a new (way of thinking) in America and beyond where folks are sort of reexamining events. It's been called the 'reset economy' to some degree, and so, we’re giving every marketing investment greater scrutiny than before. In this case, we want to leverage the FedEx Orange Bowl investment in a more powerful and impactful way (to the point where) we'll be well served not to have advertised in the Super Bowl, and to have our own Super Bowl with the FedEx Orange Bowl" (BRANDWEEK.com, 1/6).