Pepsi Makes Power Play Over Coke's PowerAde Ads

April 14, 2009: The battle for consumers in the sports drink category took another nasty turn with a lawsuit filed by PepsiCo, Gatorade's parent company, against Coca-Cola and its PowerAde drink. The suit targets new marketing that claims PowerAde Ion-4 is a better choice because Ion-4 has more electrolytes. The official PowerAde Ion-4 Web site, for example, claims, "You wouldn't settle for an incomplete Web site. Don't settle for an incomplete sports drink," with an arrow pointing to what appears to be a Gatorade bottle. According to the PepsiCo lawsuit, "There is no evidence, scientific or otherwise, that PowerAde Ion-4 functions better than Gatorade as a sports drink.” PepsiCo filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in New York through Stokely-Van Camp, a PepsiCo unit that owns the Gatorade brand. PepsiCo acquired Gatorade in 2001 when it bought Quaker. Gatorade is the clear leader in the sports drink category with 77% of U.S. take-home sales in 2008 versus PowerAde's 22%, according to trade publication Beverage Digest. “Gatorade is the most thoroughly researched beverage in the world, and the only sports drink with more than 40 years of science to back up its claims that it works - hydrating athletes, replenishing electrolytes and providing fuel for working muscles,” PepsiCo said in a statement. PowerAde's lead agency for the marketing specified in the lawsuit is Ammirati, New York. “We stand behind our product and are prepared to defend the role that PowerAde plays in hydrating consumers,” Scott Williamson, a spokesman for Coca-Cola, said in a statement. Back to Home Page