Marin Institute

Anheuser-Busch InBev kicked off the academic year with a Bud Light marketing campaign specifically tailored to college football, despite a warning from the Federal Trade Commission and continuing complaints from multiple colleges and universities across the country.

The product at the center of the "Tailgate Approved” campaign: cans of Bud Light made with 26 different color combinations similar to the school colors of prominent colleges and their football teams. These “Fan Cans” are sold in 24- and 30-packs.

The campaign includes TV ads, a website that asks users to vote for their favorite “Fan Cans,” and games involving tailgating and naming fantasy football teams that can be played on the website or on Facebook.

According to one poll, more than half of the public is opposed to the school-color beer cans. Even the usually sleepy Federal Trade Commission has weighed in. According to a Wall Street Journal article, Janet Evans, a senior FTC attorney who oversees alcohol advertising, says the federal agency has "grave concern" that the campaign could encourage underage and binge drinking on college campuses.

Well, duh.

While Anheuser-Busch InBev says that it is “committed to being a part of the solution to alcohol abuse issues on college campuses by promoting responsible behavior,” in reality the “Tailgate Approved” campaign does the exact opposite: it contributes to the harm of dangerous drinking on college campuses by promoting illegal behavior.

Rightfully concerned about unwittingly promoting underage drinking, as well as potential licensing and trademark violations, some schools have made their discontent known to Anheuser-Busch InBev, including: Boston College, Iowa State, Mississippi State, New York’s Stony Brook University, Oklahoma State, Purdue, Texas A&M, University of Colorado at Boulder, University of Kansas, University of Michigan, University of Minnesota, University of Missouri, and University of Wisconsin.

Those colleges and universities that have not yet complained need to do so, now.

What you can do today:

• Contact Anheuser-Busch InBev (800-DIAL-BUD) to complain about Bud Light cans with school colors in your local community, and ask them to pull the entire campaign immediately.
• Ask the president of your local college or university to complain to Anheuser-Busch InBev about the “Fan Cans” and ask for the entire campaign to be pulled immediately. (The company says they are being responsive to complaints.)
• Contact Janet Evans (202-326-2125) at the Federal Trade Commission and ask her to formally investigate Anheuser-Busch InBev and the “Tailgating Approved” campaign.