Anheuser-Busch CEO cites polling data as company aims for Bud Light comeback

The CEO of Anheuser-Busch is making moves to see that one of its most iconic drinks, Bud Light, is able to make a comeback in the wake of the controversy it generated earlier this year.

Amid the attempt of a comeback, Anheuser-Busch CEO Michel Doukeris cited a recent poll that stated 40% of ex-Bud Light consumers were willing to buy the drink again. The popular beer brand stirred controversy after it did a partnership with influencer Dylan Mulvaney, a biological male who identifies as a transgender woman, with decreased sales of Bud Light following the partnership.

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“We are committed to continue to invest in Bud Light and all the platforms that consumers love,” Doukeris said.

Greg M. Cooper/AP

As part of the company’s plan for investing in the Bud Light brand, Anheuser-Busch made a $1 billion stock buyback and also partnered with the Ultimate Fighting Championship for a sponsorship deal. Doukeris has said that the company has “a good grip on what we need to do” in the future to address its Bud Light situation.

The recent sponsorship deal that Anheuser-Busch made with the UFC is reportedly worth nine figures and will last for six years, according to a report from the Sports Business Journal. UFC President Dana White has defended the deal, saying he is focused on “all the good things” that Bud Light’s parent company has done, including employing veterans and helping farmers in the United States.

Last week, it was revealed that Anheuser-Busch endured a 13.5% decline in its third-quarter U.S. revenue per 100 liters, which is a key measure used for beer sales. The brewing company also reported its sales to U.S. retailers going down by almost 17% “primarily due to the volume decline of Bud Light,” according to the report.

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In the wake of the Bud Light controversy, a new beer brand called Conservative Dad’s Ultra Right beer launched in April, with the intent of being an alternative to Bud Light. The beer brand recently sold $500,000 worth of beer cans featuring the mugshot of former President Donald Trump, with 10% of it going toward the Republican Party’s legal defense in Georgia, where Trump was indicted in August over his alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 election.

Seth Weathers, the founder of Conservative Dad’s Ultra Right beer, said in an interview last month that people have “had enough of the stupidity” from more established companies, thus contributing to his brand’s success.