Ahead of the Super Bowl, Budweiser Loses Significant Market Share

For many decades, beer and the Super Bowl have been two of the most important winter traditions of the United States, and American brand Budweiser has played an important part in terms of sales, marketing and advertising. Budweiser television commercials and clever stunts such as the Bud Bowl are expected each time the winners of the American and National Conferences play their final game of the year, but football fans are no longer as enthusiastic about this brand.

Until 2001, Budweiser was the undisputed top-selling beer across the United States; however, Anheuser-Busch brewers scored a major hit with their new formulation of Bud Light, which was deemed smoother and more palatable than the original “King of Beers.” Even though Budweiser managed to hold on to its status as a strong American brand, Anheuser-Busch decided to leave its brewing intact even as rivals were coming up with more palatable beers.

Bud Light and Budweiser enjoyed the top two spots among American beer drinkers until 2011, when Coors Light relegated the former King of Beers to the third spot, which is now occupied by Miller Lite. It should be noted that both Coors Light and Miller Lite have improved their formulation while Budweiser has not.

Coming up fast on the heels of Budweiser are two Mexican brands: Corona and Modelo, which have been taking advantage of online social networks for promotion purposes. Beer industry analysts believe that Corona could soon surpass Budweiser unless brewers do something to upgrade a taste that has fallen out of favor in the U.S.

Some marketing analysts believe that Budweiser has not been able to capitalize on the “America First” sentiment introduced by U.S. President Donald Trump during his contentious political campaign. Unfortunately, this sentiment has not translated well into policy due to the chaotic Trump administration, and this situation certainly did not help Budweiser when it launched a limited edition “America” cans and bottles in 2016; some beer drinkers incorrectly assumed that this branding effort was associated with the Trump campaign, which certainly did not help Anheuser-Busch InBev.

According to a news report published by CBS Philadelphia, the craft beer craze that has swept across the U.S. has impacted major brands; however, there are signs that beer drinkers are settling into favorites, which at this moment include Magic Hat, Pyramid and Green Flash. Regional beers such as Anchor Steam in San Francisco and Narragansett in Rhode Island look strong ahead of the Super Bowl.