Bud Light is owned by AB InBev (Belgium, NYSE: BUD), which acquired the brand on 18 November 2008 from Anheuser-Busch, as part of a $52 billion deal that also included Budweiser and Michelob Ultra.[1][2] Before AB InBev, Bud Light was owned by Anheuser-Busch from 1982 to 2008.[2]
Bud Light launched in 1982 and was for two decades the best-selling beer in the United States, before losing that position in 2023 after a marketing controversy triggered a consumer boycott. It remains one of the largest beer brands in the world by volume.
What AB InBev's annual report says about Bud Light
Sentences about Bud Light from AB InBev's latest annual filing[1], copied word for word.
Bud Light has been the Official Beer Sponsor of the NFL (National Football League) since 2011 and has a multiyear marketing partnership as the Official Beer Partner of UFC.
How often AB InBev names Bud Light in its annual report
A plain count of the times the name appears in the text of each annual report, not counting the start of a sentence. A brand that an owner writes about more is usually one it treats as central. The brand is named less often than it was three years earlier.
The USPTO record for the Bud Light mark lists Anheuser-Busch, LLC as the owner of record (serial number 73386660). A trademark is often held by a group company rather than the listed parent, so the registrant's name can differ from the owner named above.[4]
AB InBev is a publicly listed company headquartered in Leuven, Belgium, founded in 2008. Brandtree records 21 brands under its control, and it is listed as NYSE: BUD.
AB InBev is the largest brewer in the world, formed in 2008 when the Belgian-Brazilian InBev acquired Anheuser-Busch and enlarged again in 2016 by taking over SABMiller. Its beers are sold in about 150 countries.
Brandtree records a controlling owner for 2,549 brands that began in the United States.
478 of them (19%) are now controlled by a company headquartered in another country, Bud Light among them.
Belgian-Brazilian brewer InBev acquired Anheuser-Busch for $70 a share in cash after an initially hostile approach, creating Anheuser-Busch InBev and moving control of Budweiser out of the United States.
The Office of Fair Trading cleared InBev's acquisition of Anheuser-Busch for the United Kingdom in November 2008. The combination created the largest brewer in the world and began the consolidation that later produced the AB InBev and SABMiller merger.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the parent company of Bud Light?
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The parent company of Bud Light is AB InBev, a publicly listed company headquartered in Belgium.
Is Bud Light owned by Molson Coors?
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No. Bud Light is owned by AB InBev, not Molson Coors.
Is Bud Light American or Belgian?
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Bud Light originated in the United States in 1982, but it is owned today by AB InBev, which is headquartered in Belgium. So Bud Light is an American-origin brand under Belgian ownership.
When did AB InBev buy Bud Light?
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AB InBev completed its acquisition of Bud Light on 18 November 2008, after announcing the deal on 14 July 2008. The deal, which also included Budweiser and Michelob Ultra, was valued at $52 billion.
Who owned Bud Light before AB InBev?
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Before AB InBev, Bud Light was owned by Anheuser-Busch from 1982 until 2008.
Is Bud Light still owned by AB InBev?
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Yes. As of 9 October 2026, Bud Light is still owned by AB InBev. The ownership record was last checked against primary sources on that date.
Sources (4) & corrections
Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.
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