• Loading stock data...
Friday, January 17, 2025

Sports Drink Industry Quickly Filling Up Behind Gatorade

  • BodyArmor President Brent Hastie wants to reinvent the category like Starbucks did coffee.
  • Gatorade keeps charging forward business as usual with an eye toward athletes.
BodyArmor Goalie
Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

With a 70% share of the sports drink market, Gatorade is the default sports drink for most Americans. 

What makes up the rest of the sports drink category, however, is quickly blurring.

From newer sports drinks like BodyArmor and BioSteel to energy drinks like Bang and C4 to tablets and supplements like Nuun and Ladder, the category is spreading down drink aisles as consumers gravitate toward a wide swath of options to fit active lifestyles. 

At least that’s the way BodyArmor President Brent Hastie sees the category now.

The company recently surpassed $1 billion in 2020 sales, had 70% revenue growth this year, and now claims 15% market share of the “traditional” sports drink category, which doesn’t count many of the other options outside of Gatorade and Powerade.

“You’re seeing this blurring of a traditional category and those definitions will go away,” Hastie said. “[Nielsen] will still report it, but from a consumer standpoint, that whole landscape will change.” 

For the traditional sports drink companies, there is still a battle brewing for supremacy. 

BodyArmor founder Mike Repole created headlines when he said he predicts his product can dethrone Gatorade by 2025. The brand made more by building a portfolio of elite athlete partners like Mike Trout, Naomi Osaka and James Harden, who also received equity in the company.

The company also added relationships with MLS and the U.S. Open in the past year.

Gleyber Torres

Yankees Shortstop Gleyber Torres Paving Way For NextGen Baseball Marketing Stars

As the New York Yankees shortstop, 23-year-old Gleyber Torres likely could not…
August 7, 2020

Upstart Canadian drink company BioSteel is following a similar path as it grows in the U.S. market. It has deals with elite young talent like Patrick Mahomes, Connor McDavid, and Gleyber Torres. BioSteel also put together a collection of NBA partners this offseason including the Brooklyn Nets, Dallas Mavericks, Philadelphia 76ers and Toronto Raptors.

Others like Ready Nutrition — which touts reigning two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and Los Angeles Rams star Aaron Donald as investors — are also pushing for their space in the market. 

With a bundle of new competitors, Gatorade owner Pepsi and Powerade parent [and BodyArmor investor] Coca-Cola have to work to maintain their powerful status.

“BodyArmor has shown the market share can be dented; you can fight your way in and gain meaningful share,” said Duane Stanford, executive editor at Beverage Digest. “There’s no reason to believe Gatorade won’t do what they need to do, whether a little late or not, to stay dominant.”

Gatorade has introduced new products to its core sports drink lineup, including Gatorade Zero and the new Bolt24 — made with watermelon water, sea salt and no added sweeteners. Bolt24 comes in three sublines: Antioxidant with Vitamins A and C; Energize with caffeine; and Restore with collagen.

The category leader also contributes to the blurring of the category, with its Protein Recovery Shakes, carbohydrate energy drinks and chews and the Gx system with unique formulas. That’s all on top of its Muscle Milk-maker Cytosport acquisition.

Gatorade G-League

Gatorade Focuses on G League As A Pathway for Innovation

Photo Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports As the most active sports time…
August 28, 2019

As competitors fill out their endorsement portfolios, Gatorade hasn’t sat still either.

Along with its NFL, NBA, WNBA, NHL and MLB deals and long-term partners like Peyton Manning, Bryce Harper and J.J. Watt, the company has recently added young stars like Zion Williamson, Matthew Wolff, Damian Lillard and Fernando Tatis Jr.

Jeff Kearney, Gatorade global head of sports marketing, said the company’s focus hasn’t changed since it created the category 55 years ago: “delivering safe, scientifically-backed products that help athletes perform at their best.”

“While competition will come and go, our focus remains the same – on the athlete and helping to better their performance,” Kearney said. “Whether it be introducing new innovation, providing scientific backing to each and every product, or inspirational storytelling, we are maniacally focused on athletes at every level and helping them perform at their absolute best.”

While it might seem impossible for Gatorade to fall from the top, consumers just need to look down the beverage aisle to see a plausible future.

Hastie used coffee to describe a potential scenario, equating Gatorade to Folgers before Starbucks altered the way the world looked at the caffeinated beverage.

The transformation took decades, but now a slew of small coffee roasters have also made their way into coffee drinkers’ lives. 

The same can be seen in the beer and spirits industries where behemoths maintain the large majority of market share, but small producers have carved out a decent and meaningful chunk.

“Starbucks made premium coffee mainstream, now everyone will pay $4 to $5 for coffee,” he said. “The whole experience was reinvented, it wasn’t innovation it was a transformation.”

Stanford said for a time, it appeared Coca-Cola was trying to bookend Gatorade with the cheaper Powerade and more expensive BodyArmor.

Now, he notes Powerade is debuting new products speaking to athlete performance, like Branch Chain Amino Acid additions, that might suggest otherwise. 

Will BodyArmor or BioSteel become the sports drink equivalent of Starbucks? Only time will tell.

“There’s a constant churn of interesting stuff and a constant churn of customers,” Hastie said. “We’re premium, but that doesn’t mean I want to be a niche brand, we want to reinvent the category.”

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Australian Open Animating Matches on YouTube in Broadcast Loophole

The animated players have drawn comparisons to Wii Sports characters.
Showboats’ Daewood Davis (2) celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the UFL game between the San Antonio Brahmas and Memphis Showboats in Simmons Liberty Bank Stadium in Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium in Memphis, Tenn., on Saturday, April 6, 2024.

The UFL Is Primed for Success—If It Can Resist Its Impulse for..

The spring football league must buck temptation if it wants to succeed.
Mar 5, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta smiles during the third quarter against the San Antonio Spurs at Toyota Center.

Cubs, Mavs, Rockets Owners Co-Hosting Trump Reception With Zuckerberg

Owners of three sports teams are teaming up for an inauguration party.
The United States Capitol during the certification of votes by Congress making Donald Trump president on Jan. 6, 2025.

U.S. House Passes Ban on Transgender Athletes in Women’s Sports

The bill would apply to all educational levels, from kindergarten to college.

Featured Today

Race leader and eventual stage winner Primož ROGLIČ (SVN/RedBull-Bora-Hansgrohe) in the final kilometer up the finish climb of stage 19 from Logroño to Alto De Moncalvillo (ESP/168km) of the 79th La Vuelta Ciclista a España 2024 on 6 September. // Kristof Ramon / Red Bull Content Pool // SI202409060905 // Usage for editorial use only //Primož ROGLIČ (SVN/RedBull-Bora-Hansgrohe) congratulated by teammate Florian LIPOWITZ (DEU/RedBull - BORA - hansgrohe) after a very strong stage 13 from Lugo to Puerto De Ancares (ESP/171km) of the 79th La Vuelta Ciclista a España 2024 on 30 August

Red Bull Is on a Hot Streak in Sports. Can It Win..

The company is betting on a big future in cycling.
Ohio State Buckeyes defensive end Jack Sawyer (33) knocks the ball out of the hands of Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers (3) and returns the fumble for a touchdown in the fourth quarter of the Cotton Bowl Classic during the College Football Playoff semifinal game at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas on January, 10, 2025.
January 11, 2025

College Football Is Closer Than Ever to Perfecting the Championship Process

Despite valid criticisms, the first expanded Playoff is working.
Jan 2, 2025; New Orleans, LA, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman (R) reacts on the sidelines in the final minute against the Georgia Bulldogs during the fourth quarter at Caesars Superdome.
January 9, 2025

Amid Realignment Mania, Notre Dame Stayed Independent. It Paid Off

How the CFP semifinal-bound Fighting Irish made their business model work.
Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (4) celebrates a first-down catch against Oregon during the 2025 Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.
January 3, 2025

The Biggest Changes to College Sports Are Coming in 2025

Sweeping developments could affect the college sports foundation this year.
FIFA

Saudis Awarded 2034 World Cup in Uncontested Vote

Saudi Arabia was the only option after Australia decided not to bid.
May 20, 2024

Top Sports Business Jobs This Week (May 2024)

Each week, our staff combs through the thousands of job listings from…
The stands at the Solheim Cup
September 13, 2024

LPGA Apologizes for Solheim Cup Fan Bus Debacle That Left Stands Half-Empty

The USA-Europe women’s team golf event teed off Friday morning.
Sponsored

How UBS Crafts Impactful Partnerships Across Sports, Arts, and Culture

As UBS continues to expand its impressive array of sports and entertainment partnerships, the company solidifies its position as a leader in wealth management.
October 3, 2022

Real Madrid President Renews Call for Super League

Real Madrid’s president believes that soccer is losing ground.
August 10, 2022

PGA Tour Touts Projected Earnings to Keep Players

The PGA Tour is asking its players to consider their potential futures.
August 10, 2022

Bayern Munich to Make Growth Push in U.S. Market

Bayern Munich is looking to expand its reach in the U.S.
Nintendo-logo
August 3, 2022

Nintendo Profits Underwhelm, Switch Sales Decline

Nintendo failed to meet expectations in the company’s latest earnings report.