Molson Coors Beverage Company
08/31/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 08/31/2026 10:08
In the Market: Getting local with football
By Paul Nasr, 31 August, 2026
Our "In the Market" series explores how we bring our brands to life in our local markets, closest to our customers and consumers. This edition highlights how our brands are strapping in for football season through the lens of Megan Hudgens, Field Marketing Manager for Indiana, Iowa, and Illinois.
When Molson Coors finalized the designs for its first-ever edition of Indiana University-branded Coors Lights cans, Field Marketing Manager Megan Hudgens posted them on Instagram to give her followers a little taste of what's to come.
She never received more replies on a post in her life.
"To say fans are excited for football here is an understatement," says Hudgens. "The fandom is intense, so every season we try to elevate how our brands are showing up for fans, making this season even better than the last."
Molson Coors field marketers across the country have worked tirelessly for months to build plans that will resonate with football fans in their markets in time for kickoff, and distributors have been putting in the work to help bring those plans to life. For Hudgens and her team, that means creating new work for alliance partnerships while showing up for every fan, no matter who they cheer for.
Having an alliance partner defending a National Championship certainly doesn't hurt.
With Indiana Football fervor at an all-time high, the team not only debuted the aforementioned Indiana-themed cans, but also redesigned Indiana Coors Light packaging to feature the school's stripes, invested in using the official Indiana championship logo for new point-of-sale materials, and is adding a new Coors Light-wrapped trailer and more tap handles to serve fans at the stadium this season.
"Indiana is a huge opportunity; the fans are loyal, and the alumni base is huge," says Hudgens. "With excitement around football in Bloomington building, our plans are stronger than ever. Like the football team itself, we are meeting the moment."
Up the highway in South Bend, Hudgens and team are activating year two of another formidable alliance partner: Notre Dame. With last season as a launching pad, the team is ready to fight even harder along with the Irish. For the first time ever, Coors Light is debuting Notre Dame-branded packaging and cans for the season.
Throughout the rest of Hudgens' region, the excitement is just as palpable. In Illinois, teams are leveraging Chicago Bears and Miller Lite packaging across the state to win the strongest placements and get Bears fans excited to host gameday celebrations and tailgates. In Iowa, Hudgens and company are leveraging the Iowa State alliance to keep Molson Coors brands front of mind for the football-crazed fan base.
And throughout the entire region, whether or not it's with an alliance partner, the field marketing team is thinking football, football, football. That includes football-themed point of sale in every corner of the region, and working with partners to get Coors Light beer-cheese-flavored Cheez-Its on the floor with displays.
"Football and Midwest go together like beer and a burger," says Hudgens. "Our entire field marketing organization is focused on showing up big in the places and occasions our consumers are celebrating. And for many of our regions - like mine - that means showing up big for football. It's game on."
Molson Coors Beverage Company published this content on August 31, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on August 31, 2026 at 16:09 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]