AB InBev’s Bud Light is joining forces with the National Football League (NFL) in an effort to stimulate new sales for the lager brand.
This collaboration will launch a campaign titled “Easy to Sunday,” featuring fresh television and digital advertisements scheduled for the NFL’s traditional season in the autumn and winter of 2024/2025.
Moreover, the brand plans to unveil special edition cans for 23 NFL teams, adorned with the respective team colours, logos, and player illustrations.
With the NFL comprising 32 teams, it’s noted by USA Today that not every team has chosen to participate in this Bud Light initiative, indicating that the brand’s recent controversies have not entirely dissipated.
The special cans are currently making their way to stores, each bearing a QR code. Scanning this code offers consumers the opportunity to win one of 2,000 subscriptions to the NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube and YouTube TV, along with e-gift vouchers from the Fanatics merchandise website.
Anheuser-Busch’s CEO, Michael Doukeris, highlighted in comments to USA Today, conveyed to investors that a survey of over 170,000 consumers revealed approximately 80% offered a “favourable or neutral” perception of Bud Light.
Doukeris emphasised that Bud Light patrons “want to enjoy their beer without a debate” and desire the brand to “focus on beer” and “concentrate on the platforms that all consumers love, such as NFL.”
Discussing the campaign, Todd Allen, Bud Light’s Vice President of Marketing, stated: “Bud Light has been the Official Beer Sponsor of the NFL for over 27 years, and every season we eagerly anticipate making fans’ gameday celebrations simpler with a Bud Light and America’s favourite sport: football. We recognise that for NFL enthusiasts, Sunday is not just game day but also a time for cherished traditions. Our new ‘Easy to Sunday’ campaign is a tribute to those authentic Sunday moments that connect NFL fans nationwide with their friends, family, and communities – and we are immensely proud to be part of this as a brand.”
In the wake of a 16% increase in on-trade beer sales during the Super Bowl, the event spelled additional challenges for AB InBev’s Bud Light, which had previously dominated on-premise sales for the 2023 game. Despite significant investment on the day to win back fans, including the revival of iconic adverts featuring Clydesdale horses, Bud Light’s sales dropped dramatically by 50% compared to Super Bowl day in 2023.