Molson Coors' Miller Lite and Coors Light Vie for Super Bowl Limelight

When it comes to Super Bowl marketing, Anheuser-Busch InBev brands have dominated the alcoholic beverage category for 33 years. When its exclusivity agreement with the Super Bowl ended this past summer, competitor Molson Coors almost instantly committed to a Super Bowl 57 ad. The only question was which of its brands would take the 30-second spot. In a duel on par with Brandy and Monica, Molson Coors sister brands Miller Lite and Coors Light will compete to claim the Big Game ad. "The decision to buy the Super Bowl spot took 45 seconds," global vp of Miller and economy brands Sofia Colucci told Adweek. "We knew right away that we were going to do it, there was no question." Super Bowl 57 Ad Tracker: All the 2023 Commercials Colucci said the Miller Lite team wrote a manifesto to agency partners to explain why it's the right brand to be advertising during Super Bowl. Marcelo Pascoa, vp of global and North American marketing for Coors, said the conversations at Molson Coors have all been about how significant a moment this is for the entire company. "The driver behind everything was, 'We want to execute the absolute best idea that we possibly can,'" he added. "We want to do something that has never been done before. We want to do something that consumers have never seen before." Taking it to the streets According to Pascoa, the ad will air in the first half of the Super Bowl. Pascoa and Colucci declined to reveal what creative agency the brand is working with. To promote the brand competition, Molson Coors unveiled a full-page print ad in The New York Times today. The ad features graphics of both Miller Lite and Coors Light along with a spoof article announcing the Super Bowl spot and both brands claiming their ad will be in the Super Bowl. The campaign will also live on social media and OOH. Coors Light will have OOH signage in its home city of Golden, Co. while Miller Lite will have signage in its stomping grounds of Milwaukee, Wis. Though neither brand has had a Super Bowl spot in decades, both have advertised around the Big Game and tried to be creative with guerrilla marketing tactics. Last year, Miller Lite created a Super Bowl ad that aired only in the metaverse. In 2021, Coors Light placed an ad in the dreams of consumers using "targeted dream incubation." "Our belief is that sometimes constraints can actually lead to even stronger creativity," Colucci said. "That's the experience that we've had in the last number of Super Bowls because quite frankly, we were locked out. So we had to find creative ways for us to get a disproportionate amount of earned media and cultural conversation around our brands." Colucci said the same creative thinking will come into play for its actual Super Bowl spot. Pepsi Zero Sugar Will Take the Spotlight in Super Bowl Ad Through all of the jockeying, the final decision will be made by Molson Coors CMO Michelle St. Jacques. The winner of the Super Bowl battle won't be known until Feb. 12, according to the print ad. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and we're going to make it count," Pascoa said. "We really want to do something that people will enjoy, but also something that will surprise people." Molson Coors will have plenty of company in the alcoholic beverage category in the Super Bowl. Diageo’s Crown Royal recently joined the Super Bowl party, while Rémy Cointreau announced a Super Bowl ad last week.