Reports finds medical insurance and fast-food ads win attention during State of Origin
Georgia Falloon: 'There’s no better moment for brands to align with the emotion and momentum of one of the biggest nights on the Aussie sports calendar.'
State of Origin game three will see the Blues and Maroons go head-to-head for the winner’s trophy, while all eyes will be on the winner, the advertisers are set to claim a piece a decent slice of the attention pie.
The Mindset Graph, from GumGum, found that in game two, ads in medical insurance and fast-food categories held the highest average Attention Time with 3.9 seconds and 3.8 seconds, respectively.
That was followed by politics with 3.5 seconds, streaming services at 3.5 seconds and electric vehicles at 3.4 seconds.
Both medical insurance and fast food had strong alignment between brand messaging and the emotional intensity of the event.
The contextual intelligence company noted that fast food was a natural fit with game-day viewing habits, as convenience and sharability drove consumer choice.
Meanwhile, medical insurance linked to the high-contact nature of the sport, and aligned with themes of protection, resilience, and wellbeing cutting through during moments of heightened audience attention.
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GumGum’s Mindset Graph also found the series has generated 10 million open web mentions across June 2025 and the attention of NRL die-hards and brands that want audience insights across context-rich environments.
The Mindset Graph is GumGum’s proprietary AI technology that examines real-time contextual signals such as sentiment, emotion, and engagement and dissects how consumers are most mentally available to connect with advertising.
The technology empowers marketers to engage audiences in the moments that matter most in response to the growing demand for privacy-safe and cookie-free targeting.
With major sporting events like Origin, the Mindset Graph offers a smarter, mindset-driven way to tap into emotional highs and drive meaningful impact.
In State of Origin game two, QLD Maroons surged nearly 11x from pre-game to post-game, meanwhile NSW saw a 4x spike after their Game one win.
GumGum noted that the trends demonstrated how consumer behaviour is increasingly influenced by cultural moments, with attention gravitating towards brands that feel timely and emotionally resonant.
The Mindset Graph allows brands to align messaging with the right mindset, maximising relevance and impact during events like Origin when national attention is at its peak.
“All eyes are on the decider,” said Georgia Falloon, Sales Director, QLD, SA & WA at GumGum.
“There’s no better moment for brands to align with the emotion and momentum of one of the biggest nights on the Aussie sports calendar. And with the Mindset Graph, they can do it in a way that’s deeply contextual and truly resonates.”
Top image: State of Origin game one
