Budweiser brewer AB InBev set to replace Heineken as Champions League beer sponsor

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GENEVA (AP) — Budweiser brewer AB InBev is set to end Heineken’s three-decade-long run as the official beer sponsor of soccer’s Champions League in a statement deal for the competition’s new global sales agent Relevent.

Exclusive talks with AB InBev will begin for a six-year deal starting in 2027, said UC3, the joint business venture between Champions League organizer UEFA and the increasingly influential European Football Clubs (EFC) group.

The potential deal would be global and cover all UEFA men’s club competitions for six seasons, UC3 said in a statement. It would likely be worth close to 200 million euros ($232 million) each season.

“Our selection by UC3 reflects our commitment to football and our mega-platform strategy,” AB InBev said in a statement. "We look forward to becoming a great partner to UC3 for years to come.”

It's the first major deal lined up by Relevent since it was picked this year by the EFC group and UEFA to drive up the value of commercial deals and raise prize money for hundreds of clubs who enter the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League each season.

The target is at least 5 billion euros ($5.8 billion) in gross revenue each season from 2027. Current gross revenue is at least 4.4 billion euros ($5.1 billion), which pays almost 2.5 billion euros ($2.9 billion) into the prize fund shared by the 36 Champions League teams.

AB InBev sealing a Champions League deal would add soccer’s prized club competition to its longstanding World Cup partnership with FIFA and a three-Olympics deal with the IOC that started last year in Paris and runs through the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Games.

Heineken’s beer brands have had exclusive Champions League rights since 1994 and the Netherlands brewer’s latest renewal expires in 2027. It was closely tied to UEFA’s longtime Switzerland-based sales agency TEAM Marketing which has been dropped in favor of Relevent.

The influential clubs group rebranded this month as EFC was known to want a more dynamic commercial program and for Relevent to drive higher value deals that would help pay clubs more.

Still, Heineken has a reputation as one of the more lucrative Champions League deals, likely paying more than 100 million euros ($115 million) per season.

Dropping Heineken from the competition would seem to send a clear message to other long-term Champions League backers, which include Sony, PepsiCo and Mastercard.

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