SYRACUSE, NY (September 9, 2024) — BeerBoard, the leader in total alcohol management technology for the bar and restaurant industry, today released its 2024 NFL Opening Weekend Trends, a review of alcohol volume and sales data over the weekend America celebrated the return of its most popular sport. Trends are based on alcohol performance across the country from September 5-8 compared against 2023 Opening Weekend (September 7-10).
Tracking over $1 billion in on-premise alcohol sales annually, BeerBoard’s real-time brand insights are generated from across national casual dining concepts, major regional and independent bars. BeerBoard’s robust client list features high-profile independent groups and major chain operators across North America. Retailers include industry leaders Buffalo Wild Wings, Hooters, Twin Peaks, WingHouse, Mellow Mushroom and Hickory Tavern.
We hope everyone enjoyed the kickoff to the 2024 season.
Cheers!
The BeerBoard Team
On-Premise Report: 2024 NFL Opening Weekend
Draft Beer Volume Grows on Opening Weekend
As America celebrated the return of professional football, so did Draft Beer, which realized an increase of 8% when compared to 2023. This was marked growth when looking deeper, as the weekend was -8.3% in 2023, when compared to 2022.
Michelob Ultra was the #1 poured brand on Draft for the weekend , seeing a +12.9% lift, while Miller Lite was the #2 brand on Draft (+0.6%).
Modelo Especiál Sees Massive Lift in Both Draft and Packaged
The winning brand of the weekend was Modelo Especiál, which realized significant growth in both Draft and Packaged. On Draft, the brand (#3 overall) was +52.9% when compared to the same weekend in 2023. In Packaged, Modelo Especiál was the #4 overall brand and was almost as successful as it was in Draft, seeing a 41.5% lift.
Among styles, Light Lagers (#1 style overall) were +7.6% for the period. Lagers, driven by the Modelo spike, saw a healthy +22.5% bump on the weekend. IPAs checked in at #3, though the style was relatively flat on the weekend (+0.4%).
RTD Cocktails Drive Packaged Growth
Packaged Products saw a 5% lift nationally in units sold per location on Opening Weekend 2024 versus 2023. The primary reason for that was Ready-to-Drink (RTD) Cocktails, which were +80% on the weekend. Non-Alcoholic packaged brands saw a +23.7% lift, while Lagers were +8.6% over 2023.
High Noon Sun Sips Pineapple was the #1 RTD Cocktail, holding 1.4% of overall volume share. Surfside Vodka Ice Tea & Lemonade was the #2 RTD.
Heineken 0.0 was the #1 Non-Alcoholic product with 1.7% share of overall volume and increased by +15.7% for units sold per location.
Corona Extra was the #1 overall brand across Packaged products, though it was down -3.5% when compared to 2023. Michelob Ultra checked in at #2 among packaged, seeing growth of +26.7% on the weekend. Rounding out the Top 5 among Packaged products, Miller Lite was #3 (-4.6%), the aforementioned Modelo Especiál at #4 and Coors Light at #5 (-14.3%).
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About BeerBoard
BeerBoard is the leading technology solutions provider for the hospitality industry, enabling retailers, distributors and suppliers to make fact-based decisions about their complete alcohol management. The company manages more than $1 billion in alcohol sales and 100,000 products through its industry-leading solutions. Its patented digital platform captures, analyzes, and reports real-time data related to alcohol ordering, inventory and payments. Versatile and easily operated from a single dashboard, it has streamlined operations, efficiency and improved revenue across the United States. Find out more about how BeerBoard is changing the alcohol industry at beerboard.com.