USA: Bud Light to remain official beer of National Hockey League

Anheuser-Busch Inc. and the National Hockey League renewed its contract for Bud Light to remain the official beer of the NHL through the 2010-11 season, St. Louis Business Journal published June 4.

Bud Light, the world's best selling beer, has been the official beer of the NHL since 1998 and sponsors 21 of the league's 24 U.S. teams.

Sources told the SportsBusiness Daily, an affiliated publication, that the three-year deal is valued at approximately $75 million, including rights fees, spending commitments with clubs, broadcast rights holders NBC and Versus and league controlled media, including NHL.com and the NHL Network.

A-B also renewed its deal with Labatt, which markets and distributes Bud Light in Canada, giving the beer exclusivity and a presence in-game and at retail across North America.

Financial terms of the deals were not disclosed.

St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc., through its Anheuser-Busch Inc. subsidiary, is the leading domestic brewer, holding a 48.5 percent share of U.S. beer sales. The company brews the world's largest-selling beers, Budweiser and Bud Light.

05 June, 2008