SYRACUSE, NY (September 11, 2025) — America’s most popular sport returned in full force as the 2025 NFL season kicked off, and fans nationwide poured into bars and restaurants to celebrate. From the primetime clash on Opening Night between the defending champion Philadelphia Eagles and “America’s Team,” the Dallas Cowboys, through Sunday night’s instant classic, BeerBoard tracked total alcohol performance across the on-premise channel.
This year’s review compares results from September 4–7, 2025, against the 2024 NFL Opening Weekend (September 5–8, 2024).
We hope everyone enjoyed the kickoff to the 2025 season.
Cheers!
The BeerBoard Team
On-Premise Report: 2025 NFL Opening Weekend
Opening Night vs Weekend Show Mixed Results for Draft
Fans came out strong for Opening Night, packing bars and restaurants to watch the defending champion Eagles battle the Cowboys. On Opening Night, draft beer saw a slight uptick (+2%), but fell a notable -7.3% for the weekend. This marks a pullback from its role as the steady anchor of game-day consumption, especially after +8% growth over the 2024 Opening Weekend.
Surprisingly, packaged products slipped −8.3% on the weekend (-10.7% on Opening Night). Much of that decline fell on beer and seltzers, while RTD and NA options do not claim as much share as Light Lager and Lagers in package sales, they continued to outperform with impressive growth of +37.6% and +39.7%, respectively.
Top Draft Performers
Despite overall category declines, light beers continued to dominate national Draft rankings:
- Michelob Ultra
- Miller Lite
- Coors Light
- Modelo Especial
- Bud Light
In Dallas, the top Draft brand was Michelob Ultra, while in Philadelphia, Miller Lite won the weekend at the taps.
Top Packaged Products
Classic imports and light beers maintained their leadership nationally:
- Michelob Ultra
- Corona Extra
- Miller Lite
- Modelo Especial
- Coors Light
In Dallas, the top Packaged brand was Modelo Especial, while in Philadelphia it was hometown driver Surfside Iced Tea and Lemonade + Vodka.
Top RTD Cocktails
RTDs continued their momentum, driven by vodka-based offerings.
- High Noon Sun Sips Pineapple
-
Surfside Iced Tea and Lemonade + Vodka
-
Sun Cruiser Iced Tea & Vodka
- Nutrl Vodka Seltzer Watermelon
- High Noon Sun Sips Peach
Top Hard Seltzers
Hard seltzers remained a popular choice for NFL fans, balancing sessionability with flavor variety.
- White Claw Hard Seltzer Black Cherry
-
Twisted Tea Original
- White Claw Hard Seltzer Mango
-
Truly Hard Seltzer Wild Berry
- Topo Chico Strawberry Guava
Top Non-Alcoholic Products
Non-alcoholic beer and seltzers showed staying power as part of the game-day lineup, appealing to fans who want to enjoy the occasion without alcohol.
- Heineken 0.0
-
Dos Equis Lime & Salt ZERO
- Michelob Ultra Zero
-
Athletic Run Wild
- Athletic Upside Down
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About BeerBoard
BeerBoard is the leader in technology and automated solutions for on-premise alcohol management. Its Alcohol Intelligence (AI) platform delivers real-time insights, automated ordering and streamlined communication between operators and suppliers — transforming how alcohol programs are managed across beer, wine, spirits and packaged products. The company manages more than $1 billion in alcohol sales and 100,000 products through its industry-leading solutions. Versatile and easily operated from a single dashboard, it has streamlined operations, efficiency and improved revenue across the United States. Find out more about how BeerBoard is changing the alcohol industry at beerboard.com.