(NewsNation) — The U.S. has a new king of beer, and it’s no longer an American company.
Modelo has now taken over as the country’s top-selling beer, replacing long-standing Bud Light for the title of America’s most popular beer.
It’s the first time in years that Bud Light has been dethroned.
Modelo took the top spot for the month of May for weeks that ended on June 3. Recent numbers show that Modelo Especial was the top-selling beer brand in the U.S. in May, with 8.4% of overall sales. Bud Light came in second with a little over 7% of the sales.
Bud Light’s slump follows some backlash from the company’s partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney in April. Recent sales have plummeted by about 25%. Some customers like singer Kid Rock posted videos to social media vowing to boycott the beer.
But even before the Mulvaney backlash, so-called light brands were slipping in sales as more people reach for craft beers or seltzers. Bud Lights’ parent company Anheuser-Busch said it plans to triple its marketing spending in the U.S. this summer in hopes of restoring that number one spot.
Modelo, however, said their success was a long time coming.
“The Modelo trajectory was in place and is not really tied to any other brand’s recent declines,” a company spokesperson said.