Budweiser released their newest Super Bowl advertisement on Tuesday and people cannot stop talking about it.
The one-minute spot tells the story of one of the Budweiser co-founders and his “pursuit of the American Dream” and what he had to go through to achieve it.
The commercial is a stark contrast to Budweiser’s typical, feel-good Super Bowl ads filled with their iconic clydesdales and puppies (although the horses do make a brief appearance). The advertisement titled “Born The Hard Way” tells the story of the beginning of the beer’s history and takes a stand on the current immigration ban debate in the process.
The ad follows Budweiser co-founder Adolphus Busch on his journey from Hamburg, Germany to St. Louis, Missouri where he would build one of the biggest beer companies in the world.
The spot shows Busch traveling across the Atlantic on a ship and arriving on the shore of the United States. After having his passport stamped, the immigrant makes his way through a crowded streets to shouts of “you’re not wanted here,” and “go back home.”
Busch makes his way down the Mississippi river and eventually arrives in St. Louis. The ad concludes with Busch meeting fellow co-founder Eberhard Anheuser in a bar where they share a beer and begin their partnership.
The spot concludes with the words: “When nothing stops your dream. This is the beer we drink.”
The advertisement seems to be implying a stance on the immigration debate sparked by President Trump’s executive order placing an immigration ban on seven Middle-Eastern nations. But Budweiser vice president Ricardo Marques insists that the ad is not meant to convey a political message.
“Adolphus Busch made an incredible journey to this country, and that’s really what this is about. It’s about his vision, his dream, everything that he doest to achieve that,” Marques told AdWeek.
“Even though it happened in the 1850s, it’s a story that is super relevant today. That’s what we’re honing in on; it’s the pursuit, the effort, the passion, the drive, the hard work, the ambition, that’s really what this is about more than anything else,” the Budweiser vp added.
“There’s really no correlation with anything else that’s happening in the country,” Marques said. “We believe this is a universal story that is very relevant today because probably more than any other period in history today the world pulls you in different directions, and it’s never been harder to stick to your guns.”
Dantheman