Why You Might Recognize The NFL Stars In The 2022 Stella Artois Super Bowl Commercial

More than 13 million people watched the Super Bowl at "bars and out-of-home locales" in 2020, per Bloomberg. Having a sea of people flood a bar means a lot of bartenders will be tapped to work. So will many restaurant workers. However, a few who would normally have a shift this year were surprised with tickets to the big game – and a day off – by NFL legends as part of a partnership with Stella Artois, according to a press release shared with Mashed. Being the team players they are, they will even take the places of the bar and restaurant employees during the big game.

Beer giant Stella Artois said gratitude motivated the idea. In a press release received by Mashed, the company explained, "Every year, bar and restaurant workers across America keep Stella Artois flowing on game day. This year, Stella Artois will thank these hard workers with a day in The Life Artois, spent making memories with a loved one at Super Bowl LVI, while the brand brings in NFL legends as substitutes because they know a thing or two about working on Super Bowl Sunday." That "thank you" was on full display in an ad featuring the former players greeting the workers.

Stella Artois' ad "Stella Substitute" features three familiar faces putting smiles on the faces of lucky workers. They make it clear that the workers' job will be to "savor the time at the Super Bowl" while the players "get a little taste" of the job. Football fans might recognize these gridiron greats as none other than Eli Manning, Dan Marino, and Ryan Clark. 

As ESPN points out, former New York Giant Eli Manning is only one of two quarterbacks to beat Tom Brady in a Super Bowl and the only one to do it twice. Ryan Clark grabbed two Suber Bowl rings as Pittsburgh Steeler before greeting ESPN viewers as what the ESPN Press Room described as a "versatile and quick-witted NFL studio analyst." And the NFL website ranked Dan Marino as number one on its list of the top quarterbacks never to win a Super Bowl, noting his record of 48 touchdown passes in a season remained unsurpassed for more than 20 seasons.

Working at a bar will certainly be a different experience than playing in the Super Bowl. But making that day work for fans is a team effort that includes peoples people who serve food and drinks. As Manning said in the press release, "Bar and restaurant workers definitely help make game day a special experience. When Stella Artois came to me with the idea, I was game to step in."