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Sports Seen Having Less Beer Money If AB InBev Buys SABMiller

Larger company would gain pricing power, leverage in talks
Beer spending on sports sponsorships could fall 20 percent

Bloomberg business news — AB InBev, SABMiller Brew a Potential Beer Blockbuster

By

Eben Novy-Williams

September 16, 2015, 10:00 PM UTC

Professional sports leagues, teams and broadcasters can no longer get drunk on beer -- or at least count on the hundreds of millions of dollars brewers have lavished on branding each year.

Anheuser-Busch InBev NV’s proposed purchase of SABMiller Plc would result in the company controlling about half of the industry’s profits, giving it more money and less competition in sponsorship negotiations. That concentrated pricing power will drive down beer spending, which ranks among the sports market’s most lucrative categories.