How Visa Psychically Predicted That The 49ers And Ravens Were Super Bowl-Bound In May

It's time for Visa to do an office lottery pool. Well before the 49ers and Baltimore Ravens were a twinkle in Super Bowl XLVII's eyes, Visa psychically predicted that the two teams would go all the way. Or it was just lucky — pick your poison.

Visa and its old agency TBWA/Chiat/Day — Visa now works with BBDO — came up with a campaign in May 2012 that ran during the fall in which the two Super Bowl teams (and specifically Ray Lewis, Patrick Willis, and Jim Harbaugh) were the stars.

The ads tout Visa's NFL Fan Offers and show a little girl asking Ray Lewis what his favorite color is at a press conference and a fan giving the 49ers a half-time speech in the locker room.

"We're obviously thrilled that these two teams have advanced to the Super Bowl," Visa's head of North America marketing Alex Craddock told Business Insider. "We always select our teams with the hope that they will do well and at least reach the playoffs as the post-season is when interest in football extends beyond just the avid NFL fan. But we've certainly been lucky too as the season is always unpredictable."

But Visa says it has a good track record of identifying which athletes are going to make it.

"Think Michael Phelps, Kerri Walsh, Allyson Felix or Nastia Liukin at the Olympics," Craddock said. "We always put a tremendous amount of thought into the personalities we select for our advertising and we believe strongly that this strategic planning process enhances the ability of our campaigns to exceed expectations."

Although Adweek points out that the company hasn't always been this lucky with its Super Bowl spots. In 2011, Visa released Super Bowl-related ads that followed four men who had been to every single Super Bowl. That year, one of the stars missed the Super Bowl because he was sick.

Watch the two ads that predicted the Super Bowl teams below: