Bud Light sales lose to Modelo Especial for second consecutive month

For the second consecutive month, Mexican lager Modelo Especial remained the king of beer across the nation in June, decrowning American-made Bud Light.

Anheuser-Busch, the light beer’s parent company, has watched sales decline as it faces a consumer boycott fueled by anger over the company’s recent partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.

Bud Light lost its spot as the No.-1 selling U.S. beer in May with conservative consumers abandoning the brand after it collaborated with the activist to promote a contest for the March Madness basketball tournament. 

A 1.7% lead

For the four weeks ending July 1, Modelo Especial took 8.7% of overall beer sales through retail stores while Bud Light came in second with a 7% share, according to an analysis of Nielsen data from consulting firm Bump Williams. Michelob Ultra came in third (6.7%), followed by Coors Light (6.1%) and Miller Lite (5.1%).

In May, the data showed Bud Light represented 7.3% of U.S. retail-store beer sales in the four weeks ending June 3 compared to 8.4% for Modelo.

Despite the recent decline, Bud Light continues to outrank Modelo in volume sales and remains the top-ranking beer brand based on dollar sales year-to-date.

Dave Williams, vice president of consumer insights and analytics at Bump Williams, told USA TODAY last month that “there’s a lot of volume from Bud Light still moving out there.” But unless “something drastic” occurs, he expects the decline in Bud Light sales will continue through “at least the summer” as Modelo and other domestic lagers continue to see gains.