Featured Image Credit: Bud Light
Topics: News, Food and Drink, Social Media
The UNILAD Team
Bud Light has found itself at the centre of yet another social media storm.
The beer brand’s sales have continued to drop since the Dylan Mulvaney controversy from earlier this year.
On Sunday, in an attempt to salvage its reputation, the brand released a 15-second ad on YouTube featuring Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce.
In the commercial, Kelce can be seen opening a can of beer and aggressively grunting with several other men.
Advert
The ad, titled ‘Backyard Grunts with Travis Kelce’, has been criticised online, with some people labelling it a desperate attempt to win back male drinkers.
“I don't understand how this appeals to Bud Light's target market, transgender youth,” one viewer commented on YouTube.
“I'm actually embarrassed for Bud Light at this point,” added another.
“This has become a complete joke… just take it off the shelf already, we're not coming back!” commented someone else.
“Man Bud Light is going for the death blow at this point,” another commenter wrote. “This is what they think of their client base, stupid grunting cavemen.”
Kelce also copped criticism for appearing in the commercial.
“Not rooting for Kelce again,” one person commented, while another called him a 'sellout'.
In early April, fans called for a boycott of Bud Light after the brand sent a can of beer to Mulvaney to celebrate her first year of transitioning to become a woman.
Bud Light's parent company Anheuser-Busch was accused of alienating its traditional customer after the move.
"Anheuser-Busch works with hundreds of influencers across our brands as one of many ways to authentically connect with audiences across various demographics,” a spokesperson from the company told the Daily Mail at the time.
"From time to time we produce unique commemorative cans for fans and for brand influencers, like Dylan Mulvaney.”
"This commemorative can was a gift to celebrate a personal milestone and is not for sale to the general public."
According to Newsweek, in the three months since the controversy, Bud Light has seen a consistent decline in sales compared to 2022.