USA: Anheuser-Busch announced on April 13 it will support the return of Major League Baseball to the nation’s capital through a three-year sponsorship of the Washington Nationals. To celebrate the Nationals’ home opener Thursday at RFK Stadium, the world-famous Budweiser Clydesdales will be on hand to delight baseball fans and represent Budweiser, the “Official Beer” of Major League Baseball.

“As a proud sponsor of the Washington Nationals, we are honored to partner with America’s newest sports franchise and to help fans celebrate the return of Major League Baseball to Washington, D.C.,” said Tony Ponturo, vice president of Global Media and Sports Marketing, Anheuser-Busch, Inc.

The Budweiser Clydesdales’ presence at the home opener is just one of many planned activities surrounding the initial three-year partnership, which includes game-day promotions and advertising, significant in-stadium signage and the exclusive distribution of 500,000 free pocket schedules to Nationals fans.

Inside RFK Stadium, Budweiser will continue its tradition of support for Washington, D.C.-area teams by retaining the prime 180-foot message position over the right field wall, just as Budweiser has for the D.C. United and Washington Redskins in the past.

The Budweiser Clydesdales were formally introduced to August A. Busch, Sr. and Anheuser-Busch on April 7, 1933, to celebrate the repeal of Prohibition. The five traveling hitches of Budweiser Clydesdales cover more than 100,000 miles annually representing Anheuser-Busch to millions across the country.

Anheuser-Busch is a longtime sponsor of Major League Baseball and 26 MLB teams.

Based in St. Louis, Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc. is the leading U.S. brewer and holds a 49.6 percent share of the domestic beer market. In a survey of 10,000 business leaders and securities analysts, Anheuser-Busch ranked first overall in quality of products and services among nearly 600 companies researched in FORTUNE magazine’s 2004 “America’s Most Admired Companies” listing. The company also is one of the largest theme park operators in the United States, is a major manufacturer of aluminum cans and is the world’s largest recycler of aluminum beverage containers.

17 April, 2005