Beyond the Bottle: How AI-driven Liquid I.V. and Svedka are drowning out legacy beer brands at Super Bowl LXI. 1211 

Beverage ads are taking over the Super Bowl this year, making it harder for beer brands to stand out. Even with so many drink brands set to appear on Sunday, AB InBev is still spending heavily and relying on its tried-and-true messaging.  

The Bia and the Super Bowl are a classic pair, much like Budweiser and its famous Clydesdale horses. In 2026, just four years after AB InBev’s 34-year-old ad ended as the Super Bowl’s only alcohol advertiser ended, viewers can expect to see all kinds of beverage ads during the big game.  

AB InBev will likely lead in Super Bowl ad time with 2.5 minutes of commercials for Budweiser, Bud Light, and Michelob Ultra. However, the company now faces strong competition from other beverage brands. Svedka will be the first vodka brand to advertise during the Super Bowl since at least 1989, and Don Julio, Captain Morgan, and Smirnoff are planning special campaigns around the event.  

Alcohol ads will also compete with drink commercials aimed at health- and hydration-focused viewers, such as Liquid I.V., Liquid Death, and Poppi. These will also be ads for healthier foods and weight loss medications.  

More Americans chose fiber and protein instead of beer and chips. It’s worth asking: Does beer still have a place at the Super Bowl?  

Beer brand execs, as well as the results of last year’s Ad Meter, indicate there is an enduring interest in beer ads. Still, the legacy football advertisers will have to continue stepping up their game to crack through the noise on Super Bowl Sunday.  

The Super Bowl is a special stage for any brand. Ricardo Marques, SVP of Marketing for Michelob Ultra, told Marketing Brew, “Recognizing that there’s always in any given year a lot going on, always many different brands bringing their very best creative work forward. That’s not lost on us.”  

Very Liquid 

During AB InBev’s years of exclusivity, the share of alcohol ads, mostly beer, as a portion of total Super Bowl ads, stayed largely the same, usually in the range of 10%-13%, from 2011 through 2022, according to data from iSpot. In the first-year post-exclusivity, the share jumped to 15%, spurred by ads from companies including Molson Coors, Heineken, Crown Royal, and Remy Martin.  

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The past 2 years, however, have marked 15-year lows in the share of alcohol ads, according to iSpot.  

This year, with increasing beverage competition, beer brands have their work cut out for them; at the same time, there’s more competition from advertisers. US adults, particularly younger ones, are drinking less, with many saying they are concerned about the health effects of alcohol. Ivy CM Stacey and Red Wells said she thinks her company’s healthy-lifestyle messaging makes it easier for us to speak to a younger audience than other brands; however, when she noted that when it comes to beer and wellness, it is not necessarily one or the other.  

It’s actually a great juxtaposition to have that kind of experimental moment on Sunday and still be receiving messages from a lot of health and wellness brands that know you’ll be looking for a solution to get back on track come Monday, she told Marketing Brew.  

Bud Light SVP of Marketing Todd Allen is betting that plenty of people do, in fact, still want to crack open a cold one like last year. Bud Light is sticking to what’s proven to work. This year’s spot is a comedic ad starring Post Malone, Shane Gillis, and Peyton Manning, all of whom have appeared in previous brand Super Bowl ads.  

They had so much success last year that we decided to reach out to them again. Allen said he also mentioned that the 2025 work was one of our most talked-about campaigns across media, social, and PR in years.  

Sister brand Michael Lobb Ultra switched up its cast, tapping actors Kurt Russell and Louis Pullman and Olympians Klo Kim and TJ O’Shea for this year’s spot, but took the same general creative approach as last year, pairing actors. With athletes in ad campaigns that emphasize competition and active lifestyles, Marks said the brand’s 2025 pickleball-themed creative featuring William Defoe, Katherine O’Hara, and a roster of pro athletes was “incredibly well-received,” he said.  

Budweiser is embracing its tried-and-true playbook as well with an Americana-drenched ad starring Clydesdale Foal.  

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Tap the keg 

Beer brands are also facing competition from hard alcohol on the ground and on social, as 360-degree Super Bowl campaigns have become all but essential across categories.  

From the San Diego portfolio, Don Julio is running a social series and hosting multiple events in San Francisco. At the same time, Captain Morgan will have an experiential presence around Levi’s Stadium and in Gainesville, Florida. Smirnoff is meanwhile collaborating with designer Aleali May on a limited-edition shirt and one-of-a-kind jacket that it’s unveiling on a branded trolley; it’s also sponsoring Super Bowl weekend events, including GLAAD’s Night of Pride and the NFL Game Day Experience.  

For Smirnoff, the official vodka sponsor of the NFL. The IRL activations are meant to appeal to younger audiences. Jennifer Holliday Hudson, North America brand leader for Smirnoff Vodka, told us.  

We prioritized meeting Gen Z where fandom lives online, and at third spaces like tailgates or in the stadium, rather than relying on a single TV moment, she said in an email.  

Here, marketers also recognize the importance of experiences in moving the needle. Michael Laub Ultra is trying its Super Bowl campaign with its Team USA sponsorship as the Olympics kicks off two days before the Super Bowl. The brand’s Olympic campaign is bookended by its run back at The Miracle fan event from January and an upcoming summit in Park City, Utah. The Super Bowl ad, which features Olympic athletes, is meant as an in-between, Marques said.  

Bud Light, which is hosting a concert with Post Malone in SF on Friday, offered hundreds of Seahawks and Patriots fans the chance to win kegs of beer at their home stadiums last weekend. Social content, such as teasers and posts from celebrity partners, will also be absolutely critical to its campaign, Allen said.  

As an AB InBev brand and the official beer sponsor of the NFL for almost three decades, Bud Light has one more trick standing out on Game Day, one that newcomers will have a hard time replicating: legacy.  

We have been a part of these iconic moments for over 35 years. He said, “We know how important the moment is, bringing people together over the most-watched live events, live sports telecast of the year, every year.” 

Source: https://www.marketingbrew.com/stories/2026/02/02/beer-beverage-ads-super-bowl-ab-inbev?hl=en-IN