It takes a big budget to be the most popular beer brand in the country.

Modelo Especial, the No. 1 beer brand in America, is also the category’s biggest advertiser, according to ad spend data from measurement firm iSpot provided to Marketing Brew.

The imported Mexican beer, which dethroned Bud Light last year in the midst of right-wing backlash to Bud Light’s work with a trans influencer, is the largest buyer of TV ads so far this year, spending an estimated $65 million as of July, per iSpot.

Much of that spend has been directed toward the Constellations Brands-owned beer’s “The Mark of a Fighter” ad campaign and on ads supporting its light beer, Modelo Oro.

Modelo has held the title as the category’s biggest spender since roughly the second quarter of 2020. Last year, Modelo spent $155 million on traditional TV ads according to iSpot data, and the brand is planning to spend even more in 2024, Constellation Brands CEO Bill Newlands recently told investors.

“Despite Modelo being No. 1, there’s still a lot of awareness opportunity, and we’re planning to go get it,” Newlands said.

Continue reading here.—RB

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Sony is gearing up for fall football—literally.

The headphones and device-maker and the NFL have struck up a wide-ranging tech partnership, the companies announced last week.

As part of the deal, Sony will be an official technology partner of the NFL, and the league’s official headphones partner. Sony technology will be integrated into NFL games, including its Hawk-Eye tracking technology to support officiating, new sideline technology, and the integration of its imaging ecosystem and its Beyond Sports visualization tech.

And during the 2025 season, Sony will roll out headphones for NFL coaches to wear on the sidelines.

While Sony was tight-lipped about the marketing strategy for the partnership, Sony and NFL execs told Marketing Brew that paid and organic partnerships with influencers will factor into the marketing of the new arrangement. As part of the deal, the company has already created content with NFL athletes Jordan Love, Kyle Hamilton, Jahmyr Gibbs, and Brandon Aiyuk showcasing Sony headphones.

“Sports for Sony is a big opportunity,” Matthew Parnell, senior director, head of brand and community marketing, and imaging solutions at Sony Electronics North America, told Marketing Brew.

Continue reading here.—JS

Last year Elon Musk told advertisers to “go fuck” themselves. Then, he tried wooing them at the Cannes Lions Festival. Now, X is suing them.

On Tuesday, X CEO Linda Yaccarino posted in an “open letter to advertisers” that the platform has filed an antitrust lawsuit against two of the most prominent advertising industry trade groups, the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) and the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), as well as the GARM members CVS Health, Mars, Orsted, and Unilever. CVS Health, Unilever, Mars, and GARM did not respond to requests for comment by publication time.

The move comes after Musk tweeted in early July that the company would take legal action against “the perpetrators and collaborators” of an alleged “massive advertising boycott” on the X platform, according to the complaint.

Continue reading here.—RB

Buck tradition. It had a good run, but traditional advertising ain’t resonating like it used to. Influencer marketing is the new go-to for brands aiming to drive awareness, maintain authenticity, and rake in revenue. So, how can you get the most return on these initiatives? Find out in impact.com’s influencer marketing guide.