America Has a New Number One Beer — and It Isn’t American

For the first time in over two decades, the USA has a new favorite brew.

By Johnny Brayson

Published June 18, 2023

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Updated June 18, 2023

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For the first time in over two decades, the most popular beer in America isn’t Bud Light.

Modelo Especial, a Mexican lager brewed by Grupo Modelo — which also produces Corona and Pacifico — is now statistically America’s favorite beer. For a four-week period ending on June 3, the south-of-the-border brew accounted for 8.4 percent of retail beer sales in the United States, which put it firmly ahead of second-place Bud Light, sales of which accounted for 7.3 percent, according to CNN.

The upheaval ends Bud Light’s reign atop the U.S. beer sales rankings after a staggering 22-year run. The ubiquitous cheap beer took over the top spot from sister brand Budweiser back in 2001 and hadn’t relinquished it until now. The elephant in the room (so to speak) is a portion of the population’s recent boycott of the brand, which has likely contributed to its sales decline.

bud light beer cans — A conservative-led boycott is at least partly to blame for Bud Light’s new second-place status.

Back on April 1, transgender activist and TikTok celebrity Dylan Mulvaney posted a Bud Light-sponsored video to her Instagram account featuring a personalized can with her likeness on it that was given to her by the brand. For reasons that remain unclear to any reasonable person, the idea of a transgender woman drinking a beer was deemed offensive and unholy by many on the right wing.

Conservative politicians and celebrities such as Kid Rock — who cried while shooting a case of Bud Light with a machine gun in a display that probably should’ve warranted a wellness check by local authorities — encouraged a boycott of Bud Light and parent company Anheuser-Busch. And it appears to have worked, sort of.

The supposedly anti-cancel culture crowd gleefully engaged in a large-scale boycott of the beverage, causing Bud Light’s sales to drop by around 25 percent weekly since the controversy began. However, that does not account for the rise of Modelo, which should be the real story here.

modelo beer can — Modelo’s flagship lager is America’s new favorite beer heading into the summer.

Having previously lived in Los Angeles, I knew that Modelo was popular — but I didn’t realize it had this kind of national reach. The brand has long been a big seller in the Hispanic market, and its success can at least be partly attributed to the nation’s changing demographics. (Hispanics made up 19 percent of the U.S. population in 2020, a 23 percent increase since 2010.)

But Modelo has also been on a hot streak the past several years thanks to a focus on bringing in non-Hispanic drinkers while maintaining its core audience, something it’s achieved through strong marketing campaigns like its partnership with UFC.

It will be interesting to see what the next several months bring. These culture war-driven boycotts tend to fizzle out when people catch wind of something else they’re supposed to be mad about, so Bud Light may retake the crown later this year once the dust settles.

It’s also worth noting that if the boycott’s goal was to bring down the whole brand, it failed, utterly and ironically. Modelo is owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev — the same massive parent company of Bud Light — meaning Anheuser-Busch still technically retains its top ranking. For now, I would encourage you to just buy whatever beer you like to drink — whether that be Modelo, Bud Light or something else.