Anheuser-Busch InBev (A-B) will still be promoting its big beer brands during Super Bowl LVII, despite foregoing its exclusivity rights for the Big Game this year.
The beer giant gave an early look at its ad spots this week, including campaigns for Bud Light, Michelob Ultra, Budweiser and Busch Light.
Super Bowl LVII will take place Sunday, February 12, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, with the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles competing for the championship.
Bud Light Promotes ‘Easy Enjoyment’ with Super Bowl Ad Featuring Miles Teller
A-B hopes to bring Bud Light into “a new era” this year, with “a brighter look, a new sense of confidence and a magnetic tone that helps fans see choosing to enjoy life is easy,” according to a press release. Marking the start of this new era is A-B’s Bud Light Super Bowl commercial, “Hold,” featuring Miles Teller and his fellow-actor wife Keleigh Sperry Teller.
The 60-second ad spot features Teller showing off his dance moves – made famous from the beach scene in Top Gun: Maverick and from viral videos on Keleigh Teller’s TikTok page – as his wife is on hold during a phone call. The duo end up both dancing and cracking open Bud Light cans “taking the otherwise boring moment as an opportunity to enjoy,” according to the release.
“Forty-one years ago, Bud Light was created to be an easy-drinking beer; that is how we were born,” Bud Light VP of marketing Alissa Heinerscheid said in the release. “We have turned that unique truth into our new platform – Bud Light is ‘easy to drink, easy to enjoy,’ and we look forward to bringing this message to life for consumers at [the] Super Bowl and beyond.”
A-B will continue with “a diverse body of creative work” for Bud Light “on its new ‘easy enjoyment’ platform,” throughout 2023. The strategy kicked off last month during the NFL playoffs, with “The Bud Light Carry” commercial premiere, featuring a woman expertly carrying a round of five pints of Bud Light through a crowded bar – and its many obstacles – to her awaiting friends.
A-B chose not to have a dedicated Bud Light ad during Super Bowl LVI, instead focusing on innovation brands Bud Light Seltzer Hard Soda and Bud Light NEXT zero carb beer.
Michelob Ultra Ad Parodies Caddyshack
A-B is marketing Michelob Ultra with golf-themed campaigns during this year’s Super Bowl. The first, “New Members Day,” is a 60-second spot featuring a golf showdown between retired professional tennis player Serena Williams and Succession actor Brian Cox, with a “nostalgic nod” to Caddyshack. The ad also features cameos by athletes Jimmy Butler, Alex Morgan, Tony Romo, Nneka Ogwumike and Canelo Alvarez.
“Golf is going through an exciting transformation to become more inclusive and more joyful, which perfectly aligns with Michelob ULTRA’s point of view and as such ended up serving as inspiration for our campaign this year,” Michelob Ultra VP of marketing Ricardo Marques said in a press release. “Beyond entertaining we’re looking to engage our audience with an approach that combines creativity, commercial integration and new partnerships; we’re incredibly excited.”
The campaign has many familiar faces from Michelob’s Super Bowl LVI campaign, titled “Superior Bowl,” which featured athletes competitively bowling. Both ads included an equal number of men and women athletes, as part of Michelob Ultra’s commitment to gender equality in sports, announced in August 2022.
Michelob Ultra’s second ad spot – “Episode Gossip” – highlights its partnership with Netflix, promoting the streaming platform’s docuseries, Full Swing, which follows professional golfers during the PGA Tour season. The 30-second ad spot features professional golfer Rickie Fowler, NFL commentator Tony Romo and professional soccer player Alex Morgan “as they receive an early look at the upcoming Netflix docuseries.” The ad will also include a QR code for viewers to scan to gain early access to episode one of the series, which premieres February 13.
Additionally, A-B is “making the big game shoppable,” with limited-edition Michelob Ultra Golf Packs. The company is partnering with the e-commerce grocery delivery app Instacart with a series of “stock up” TV ads airing in the days leading up to the Super Bowl, encouraging consumers to purchase Michelob Ultra ahead of the Big Game. Instacart will support the campaign with “shoppable media” on its app, along with email marketing, push notifications and social media posts, according to the release.
“Michelob ULTRA is a clear fan favorite and the number one most-purchased beer on Instacart for the last nine months,” Instacart CMO Laura Jones said in the release. “We’re thrilled to partner with Michelob ULTRA for our first major, cross-channel, co-marketing campaign during the NFL playoffs to help consumers stock up on Michelob ULTRA and other game day essentials, which can be delivered right to their doorsteps in as fast as one hour.”
Budweiser Revamps ‘This Bud’s For You’ With Kevin Bacon
A-B released its Budweiser Super Bowl spot Tuesday. The 30-second spot, titled “Six Degrees of Budweiser,” is a “modern interpretation of the six degree of separation concept” – the idea that any person can be connected to another individual with a chain of up to six acquaintance connections. The concept has morphed to the “six degrees of Kevin Bacon” concept, which claims every actor can be connected to Bacon.
Appropriately, Bacon narrates Budweiser’s six-degree-inspired spot, narrating “six individual journeys of real people across the country” who represent the “American spirit.” The ad spot – created by FCB New York and directed by Lalou Dammond and Joaquin Baca-Asay – also brings back Budweiser’s “This Bud’s For You” tagline “for an emerging group of Budweiser drinkers.”
As the featured individuals share their stories of “grit and resilience,” a 6-pack of Budweiser is passed along, until only one beer is left. The final beer at the end of the ad is offered to the viewer, “showing that no matter how different each person’s background, career or goals may be, we are all connected by the same shared values and drive,” A-B said in a press release.
“In bringing back our iconic tagline, ‘This Bud’s For You,’ we are also evolving the meaning behind the phrase – from something that used to signify the end of the work day to a mantra that embodies the modern consumer and all their side hustles, passion projects and career successes,” Budweiser head of marketing Kristina Punwani said in the release.
“We are going to continue this focus on intentional and authentic connections with our audience around topics and passion points that matter most to them like sports and music in 2023 and beyond,” Punwani continued.
The regional ad will air in Budweiser’s key markets, including Philadelphia, California and New York.
Individuals featured in the ad include:
- Metro Boomin, an award-winning music producer and hip-hop artist who started from “humble beginnings in St. Louis,”;
- PineappleCITI, a singer and rapper who overcame “a traffic accident that left her unable to walk for two years,”;
- Robert Moran, a construction worker overcoming the loss of his father and trying to “keep his father’s craftsmanship alive while providing for his family;”
- Theophilos Okuribido, a food truck owner who “bounced back” after a “failed venture,;”
- Damian Young, a basketball player who was raised by a “hard-working, single mother in Denver,” who always “encourage him to pursue his dream;”
- And Laura Estra, who co-founded a community group during the COVID-19 pandemic “focused on creating a collaborative environment where people can come together to eat, drink, play games and share stories.”
A 45-second version of the ad will also be available on Budweiser’s YouTube page and on social channels.
Sarah McLachlan References ASPCA Legacy in Busch Light Ad
For Busch Light, A-B is continuing “the beer brand’s long running humorous streak” with a 30-second spot featuring brand mascot “Busch Guy” and musician Sarah McLachlan.
“Shelter” features Busch Guy giving wilderness survival lessons, including how to find shelter. The ad then cuts to McLachlan in a tent with a “curiously wolf-like dog” as McLachlan’s song “Angel” plays in the background – an homage to the song’s association with ASPCA commercials.
“Realizing the hilarious misunderstanding, Busch Guy cuts in with Busch Light’s signature can crack and clarifies the type of shelter he’s referring to and lets Sarah know that she is in fact cuddling up against a wolf,” A-B said in a press release.
The ad is the first of a line of “Busch Guide” spots which will debut throughout 2023, each featuring lessons for “outdoors preparedness, including signaling for help, facing a black beer” and “avoiding poison ivy,” according to the release.
Busch Light has also committed to donating $25,000 to One Tree Planted, to help “restore forests, create habitats for biodiversity and make a positive social impact around the world.”
Last year, A-B supported Busch Light in Super Bowl LVI with a humorous 30-second spot featuring saxophonist Kenny G playing a jazzy version of Busch Lights “Head for the Mountains” song.
“Busch Light fans will love our spin on Sarah McLachlan’s iconic commercial as they always appreciate a bit of humor that ultimately serves a good cause – especially when it comes to great outdoors we both hold dear,” Krystyn Stowe, A-B head of marketing, Busch family & Natural family, said in the release.