Soccer Superstar Neymar Júnior Unveils Canned Cocktail and Mocktail Venture
(Photo: Fun Brands)
Brazilian soccer star Neymar Júnior is foraying into the lucrative canned cocktail market in partnership with Fun Brands, a Miami-based beverage group.
On Thursday, the company announced it will begin producing a line of all-natural spirit- and wine-based cocktails — as well as zero-proof mocktails — in Brazil by the end of the year. Price point, flavors and packaging have yet to be announced.
“This is a great opportunity for me to celebrate in a new way with my fans worldwide, creating possibilities for connection beyond soccer, which is my life,” Neymar said in a press release. “I want to share the flavors of Brazil that I love the most with my soccer fans at home and around the world in a different and irreverent way. The idea of also offering non-alcoholic beverages greatly attracted me to the venture.”
The Fun Brands website doesn’t reveal much else, although founder Joe Peleg says that the cocktails will expand into strategic global markets after touching down in Brazil.
In terms of Brazilian flavor inspiration, the possibilities are limitless. If Fun Brands wants to lean hard into the regional influence, the obvious choice would be a canned Caipirinha, the national cocktail of Brazil. The drink centers around cachaça — Brazil’s national spirit, distilled from fermented sugarcane — alongside lime, sugar and ice. Other local specialties like the Capeta, Caju Amigo and Rabo de Galo (alongside just about every other Brazilian cocktail in existence) feature cachaça prominently.
Brazil also boasts a handful of iconic wine-based cocktails that might make for good choices. A popular variation on the Caipirinha, dubbed the Sakerinha, swaps cachaça for Japanese rice wine. Drinkers in Brazil’s southern states are also known to enjoy Quentão de Vinho, a mulled wine made with a combination of caramelized sugar, cloves, cinnamon and ginger.
No matter what form Fun Brands takes, it’ll go up against tough competition on liquor store shelves. From Canelo Alvarez to Kylie Jenner, the celebrity-backed pre-mixed cocktail market is currently bristling with competition.
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