Bud Light, which has been embroiled in controversy in recent months, will become the official beer of UFC amid its partnership with Anheuser-Busch.
UFC revealed on Tuesday announced the deal on Tuesday, hailing Anheuser-Busch and Bud Light as the two original brands.
“Anheuser-Busch and Bud Light were UFC’s original beer sponsors more than fifteen years ago. I’m proud to announce we are back in business together,” UFC CEO Dana White said in a statement Tuesday.
Dana White said he chose to align UFC with both beer brands because they share the same values.
“There are many reasons why I chose to go with Anheuser-Busch and Bud Light, most importantly because I feel we are very aligned when it comes to our core values and what the UFC brand stands for. I’m looking forward to all of the incredible things we will do in the years ahead,” he said.
UFC president Dana White is seen on stage during the UFC 270 ceremonial weigh-in at the Anaheim Convention Center on January 21, 2022, in Anaheim, California. (Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth concurred.
“Anheuser-Busch and Bud Light have always been on the cutting edge of iconic sporting moments that fans remember forever, and reuniting with UFC is a continuation of this industry-leading legacy,” Whitworth said in a press release. “As one of the largest and longest standing sport sponsors, we are excited to work with UFC to celebrate our passionate fans while always making a positive impact in communities across America.”
Bud Light became an intense lightning rod for controversy earlier this year when it briefly partnered with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, leading to a massive backlash. In the months since the partnership, Bud Light’s sales have cratered while Modelo has overtaken the brand as America’s number-one beer. Mulvaney recently addressed the backlash when receiving the award for breakout creator at the 2023 Streamy Awards last month.
“My life has been changed for the better but also there’s been an extreme amount of transphobia and hate and I know that my community is feeling it and I know that even our allies are feeling it,” Mulvaney said. “I look around this room and I just see so many amazing allies that have platforms and I think allyship right now needs to look differently. You need to support trans people publicly and proudly.”
As Breitbart News reported, sales hit such a low for Anheuser-Busch that the company “offered distributors of Bud Light $150 million in ‘incentive payments.’”
“A report from Beer Marketer Insights, obtained by the New York Post, revealed these ‘market share recovery incentives’ were doled out to distributors of the beer to assist in paying their bills after Bud Light sales plummeted,” it noted.
Dylan Mulvaney accepts the Streamy Award for Breakout Creator onstage at The 2023 Streamy Awards held at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel on August 27, 2023, in Los Angeles, California. (Rich Polk/Penske Media via Getty Images)
UFC CEO Dana White explained his decision to partner with the company when speaking to Fox News host Sean Hannity.
“These guys employ 65,000 Americans, thousands of vets they employ. They spend over $700 million a year with U.S. farmers, you know, buying their crops for their product. And there’s many, many other reasons that I did this,” White said.
“Where I sit personally with my core values and I felt like the core values of the UFC, even though we’re a global sport, and we have fighters from all over the world. This is an American company. And I love this country and this is more about me being aligned with somebody who is a sponsor of the UFC and somebody I’m going to work with every day,” he added.
Paul Roland Bois joined Breitbart News in 2021. He also directed the award-winning feature film, EXEMPLUM, which can be viewed for FREE on YouTube or Tubi. A high-quality, ad-free stream can also be purchased on Google Play or Vimeo on Demand. Follow him on Twitter @prolandfilms or Instagram @prolandfilms.