Contributing to Negative Health Outcomes

Globally, rates of obesity and diabetes are rising. Sweetened beverages like soda are one of the leading sources of free sugar in diets. Regular consumption of sweetened beverages is associated with increased risks for health problems throughout life, including overweight and obesity, Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Here are some key facts:

• Type 2 diabetes is one of the fastest-growing global health threats, with an estimated 537 million adults living with diabetes today and 246 million more adults projected to be living with diabetes by 2045. Since 1990, obesity has morethan doubled among adults and has quadrupled among children and adolescents.

• For every 250 ml increase in daily sweetened beverage intake, risk of obesity increases 12%, risk of Type 2 diabetes increases 19%, risk of cardiovascular disease increases 13% and risk of all-cause mortality increases 5%.

• For most children and adolescents, one 355 ml soda will put them overthe daily recommended calories from free sugars. In countries without taxes on sweetened beverages, a typical 500 ml soda contains 53 grams (13 teaspoons) of free sugar. Drinking just one of these beverages puts most adults and children over the daily recommended limit.

• A global study of adults in 75 countries found that a 1% increase insoda consumption was associated with about 5% more adults with overweight, 2%more adults with obesity and 0.3% more adults with diabetes.

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Polluting the environment with plastic

Big Soda uses an enormous amount of plastic to bottle its sweetened beverages. The manufacturing, transportation and disposal of plastic bottles generates a large carbon footprint; billions of bottles that are not recycled end up Incinerators, landfills or polluting our environment and waterways. Here are some key facts:

• According to an analysis of global plastic pollution, Coca-Cola is the leading plastic polluter followed by PepsiCo, Nestlé, Danone and Altria.

• Approximately 21-34 billion plastic bottles from nonalcoholic drinks are polluting the ocean every year. The bottles are primarily from carbonated soft drinks and water.

• Despite commitments to increase the volume of beverages sold in reusable packaging, both Coca-Cola and PepsiCo increased their use of plastic packaging in 2022. Coca-Cola increased its plastic packaging by more than 6% or 206,000 metric tons to 3.43 metric tons of annual plastic packaging and PepsiCo increased its plastic packaging by 4% or 100,000 metric tons to 2.6 million metric tons.

• If Coca-Cola meets its reusable commitment, by 2030 it could eliminate the cumulative equivalent of more than 100 billion 500 ml single-use plastic bottles and prevent up to 14.7 billion plastic bottles from entering our waterways and seas.

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Targeting Children and Teens

Despite Big Soda’s voluntary pledges to not market to children, its actions tell a different story. Big Soda sponsors elite sport that children watch, as well as youth sport teams, leagues and tournaments. Big Soda companies run sport-related campaigns geared toward young people and use fitness and sport development programs to reach youth. These practices serve as a “corporate social responsibility” cover and redirect blame for rising obesity rates toward individual-level lack of physical activity rather than sweetened beverages. Here are some key facts:

• Coca-Cola’s marketing has used equity brand characters like polar bears and other characters that are attractive to children—including in sport-related promotion—as well as athlete sports endorsements, a common tactic used by Big Soda companies.

• PepsiCo’s Mtn Dew brand was the #1 in sweetened beverage ads viewed by U.S. teens in 2018. Black teens saw nearly three times as many brand ads as white teens. Mtn Dew used campaigns linked to sport like skateboarding and snowboarding and featuring professional athletes—especially NBA basketball players—endorsing Mtn Dew.

• During the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, Coca-Cola ran an ad campaign to convince teens and moms that its sweetened beverages were healthy. The company used influencers, including Olympic athletes, to reach teens. The campaign reportedly reached 21 million teenagers and accurately targeted 88% of them.

• In 2015, children in the U.S. watched telecasts associated with 10 sport organizations more than 412 million times. Four in 10 nonalcoholic beverages shown via sponsorship messages were full-calorie, regular sodas, while two in 10 were diet sodas.

• In Australia it was found that nine in 10 companies sponsoring junior sports development promoted unhealthy food, including Keurig Dr Pepper, Inc.’s soda brand Schweppes. In India, Coca-Cola runs an under-16 cricket program for cricket players ages 12-16 and sponsors a tournament called the Coca-Cola U-16 Cricket Cup.

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Big Soda uses sport to “sportswash” its image—putting profits before public health. Kick Big Soda Out exposes and challenges Big Soda’s sponsorship of teams, athletes and sporting events worldwide. Together, we can build a future where sport celebrates health, not sugary drinks. Are you ready to Kick Big Soda Out? Sign up and join the movement!

Data Privacy PolicyExamples of Big Soda’s sports sponsorship ⌵

• The Olympics

• FIFA World Cup events

• International Cricket Council

• UEFA Champions League

• UEFA Women’s Football

• National Basketball Association

• Pakistan National Cricket Team

• South Africa Rugby Union

Total Contacts
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Why Kick Big Soda Out?

For decades, Coca-Cola has used its FIFA World Cup sponsorship to push sugary drinks on millions of fans, turning moments of sportsmanship and achievement into marketing opportunities—and making the world’s biggest game into one giant ad

Big Soda uses global sport to sportswash its image and peddle unhealthy products—putting profits over the health and well-being of athletes, fans and communities around the world. Kick Big Soda Out launched during the 2024 Paris Olympics, calling on the International Olympic Committee to end its nearly 100-year partnership with Coca-Cola. Now, we are taking the challenge to FIFA.

Join the movement as we urge FIFA to cut ties with Coca-Cola—and put people, not corporations, first.

View our letter demanding an end to FIFA's Big Soda sponsorship

Kick Big Soda Out Partners

95 organizations have already joined Kick Big Soda Out. Together, we're committed to ending Big Soda’s “sportswashing” and its harmful influence on public health and the environment.

By partnering with us, your organization can take a stand and help drive positive change.
Ready to make an impact? Become a partner and join the movement by contacting us at info@kickbigsodaout.org.

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View our partners

Big Soda's Real-World Costs

Big Soda pours billions into sport sponsorships, trying to link its sugary drinks to the thrill of victory and the spirit of athleticism. But behind the glossy ads and stadium banners lies a harsher truth: Sugary drinks harm our health and the planet by:

Contributing to rising obesity and Type 2 diabetes rates

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Requiring an enormous amount of plastic to bottle products

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Targeting marketing to children and teens

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Campaign Highlights

Kick Big Soda Out has already achieved extraordinary support, and we’re committed to growing this movement to address undue corporate influence on health and the environment. Through its previous phase during the Paris 2024 Olympics, the campaign achieved:

314 million views of the Olympics campaign ad

Support of 95 partner organizations from around the globe

More than 255,000 signatures on the petition to the International Olympic Committee

57 original publications in global media outlets

Achieved 7.4 M in earned media value

Kick Big Soda Out  in the News

The 2024 Olympic Games: end the health hypocrisy

The Lancet, UK (editorial)

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Public health advocates push Olympics to drop Coca-Cola sponsorship

National Public Radio, US

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Health experts urge Olympics to cut ties with Coca-Cola

Agence France-Presse, France

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Global campaign asks to take Coca-Cola and soft drinks out of the OIympic Games

La Crónica de Hoy, Mexico [Translated headline]

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The Olympic Game’s Up: it’s time for the IOC to stop promoting sugary drinks, BMJ Global, UK (editorial)

BMJ Global, U.K. (editorial)

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For health and environment, entities unite against Coca-Cola sponsorship of the Olympic Games

Folha De S. Paulo, Brazil [Translated headline]

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The 2024 Olympic Games: end the health hypocrisy

The Lancet, UK (editorial)

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Public health advocates push Olympics to drop Coca-Cola sponsorship

National Public Radio, US

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Health experts urge Olympics to cut ties with Coca-Cola

Agence France-Presse, France

Read more

Global campaign asks to take Coca-Cola and soft drinks out of the OIympic Games

La Crónica de Hoy, Mexico [Translated headline]

Read more

The Olympic Game’s Up: it’s time for the IOC to stop promoting sugary drinks, BMJ Global, UK (editorial)

BMJ Global, U.K. (editorial)

Read more

For health and environment, entities unite against Coca-Cola sponsorship of the Olympic Games

Folha De S. Paulo, Brazil [Translated headline]

Read more

Petition

To: International Olympic Committee, National Olympic Committees and, National Ministries of Health and Sport

Dear International Olympic Committee: 

Sugary drinks harm people and our planet. By accepting billions from Coca-Cola to sponsor the Olympic Games, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) implicitly endorses a world where health and environmental harms are “sports-washed” away, undermining commitments to use sport to create a better world. This includes the following:

• Harming health. Sugary drinks are a major contributor to rising rates of obesity, Type 2 diabetes and heart disease. With continued Coca-Cola sponsorship, how does the IOC intend to meet its commitment to WHO to promote a healthy society through sport, to advance Sustainable Development Goal 3 (“Good health and well-being”) and prevent non communicable diseases?

• Damaging the environment. Plastic pollution, carbon emissions and water depletion are serious global concerns and are significant drivers of the climate crisis. With continued Coca-Cola sponsorship, how does the IOC intend to honor its commitment to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change?

• Targeting our next generation. Children’s exposure to pervasive, unhealthy food marketing is a major risk factor for childhood obesity. With continued Coca-Cola sponsorship, how does the IOC intend to protect childrenfrom the influence of unhealthy product marketing while also honoring its commitment to youth fitness and health?  

As the leader of the Olympic Movement and guardian of its values, the IOC has a responsibility to prioritize the health and well-being of people and our planet over Big Soda’s corporate interests.  

We urge the IOC to:

1. Terminate Coca-Cola’s Olympic sponsorship.
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2. Commit to not accepting future sponsorship from corporations that harm public health and the environment.

3. Accept sponsorships from corporations genuinely aligned with Olympic values, such as those that promote health and sustainability. 

By kicking Big Soda out of the Olympics, the IOC will show the world that it is not just committed to talking about these values, but that it is truly committed to make the world a better place through sport. 

This petition was delivered to the leadership of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Oct. 31, 2024. The IOC rejected the petition and reaffirmed its commitment to its sponsorship deal with Coca-Cola. But the fight to “Kick Big Soda Out of Sport!” is not over! We will continue to demand that the IOC and other global sporting organizations prioritize health and the environment over Big Soda’s profits.

Kick Big Soda Out shines a light on the multinational companies that put their profits before our health and the planet. By drawing attention to the relationship between sport and Big Soda, we will continue to mobilize individuals and organizations to call for change.

It’s time to hold Big Soda accountable.

Join the movement now!
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© 2024 KICK BIG SODA OUT OF SPORT.
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© 2024 KICK BIG SODA OUT OF SPORT. All rights reserved.

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Action for Economic Reforms (AER), Philippines
ACT Promoção da Saúde (ACT Health Promotion), Brazil
Association of Directors of Public Health, UK
Alianza Nacional para el control de Enfermedades No Trasmisibles (Alianza ENT), Uruguay
Aliança pela Alimentação Saudável, Brazil
Alianza por la Salud Alimentaria, Mexico
Amandla.mobi, South Africa
Antigua and Barbuda Diabetes Association, Antigua and Barbuda
Australian Health Promotion Association (AHPA), Australia
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Bite Back 2030, UK
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Cátedra Libre de Soberanía Alimentaria (CaLiSA), Escuela de Nutrición, Facultad de Ciencias Médicas de la Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
Center for Indonesia's Strategic Development Initiatives (CISDI), Indonesia
Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), USA
Centre for Food Policy, City St Georges, City University of London, UK
Centro de Investigación Sobre Problemáticas Alimentarias Nutricionales (CISPAN), Facultad de Ciencias Médicas de la Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
Centro de Protección a la Naturaleza (CEPRONAT), Argentina
Centro para la Defensa del Consumidor (CDC), El Salvador
Cero Basura Yucatán, Mexico
Changing Markets Foundation, Netherlands
Clean my Calanques, France
Coalición América Saludable/Coalition for Americas’ Health (CLAS), Latin America
Coalición ContraPESO (ContraPESO Coalition), Mexico
Colansa (Latin American and Caribbean Nutrition and Health Community of Practice), Latin America and the Caribbean
Collectif Vital, Canada
Community Media Trust, South Africa
Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), Nigeria
Costa Rica Saludable, Costa Rica
CRONICAS Centro de Excelencia en Enfermedades Crónicas, Peru
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EarthMedic and EarthNurse Foundation for Planetary Health (EarthMedic and EarthNurse), Trinidad and Tobago
El Colectivo de Abogados “José Alvear Restrepo” (CAJAR), Colombia
El Poder del Consumidor, Mexico
Empower, Mexico
Environmental and Social Sustainability Foundation (ESSF), Kenya
Eureka Health Services Ltd, St. Kitts & Nevis
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Federación Argentina de Graduados en Nutrición (FAGRAN), Argentina
FIAN Colombia, Colombia
FIAN International, Germany
Food Environment Research Group, University of the Western Cape, South Africa
Food for Health Alliance, Australia
Foodwatch Netherlands, Netherlands
Fórum Baiano de Direito Humano a Alimentação Adequada (FBDHAA), Brazil
Fundación InterAmericana del Corazón (FIC Argentina), Argentina
Fundación Movimiento Alimentacion Saludable, Panama
Fundación Sanar, Argentina
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Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), USA
Global Care Rescue Mission (GCRM), Nigeria
Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI), USA
Greenpeace (Global), Netherlands
Grupo de Estudios Ambientales/The Environmental Studies Group (GEA AC), Mexico
Guatemala Saludable, Guatemala
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Health Equalities Group (HEG), UK
Healthy Caribbean Coalition (HCC), Barbados
Healthy Food America, USA
Healthy Living Alliance (HEALA), South Africa
Healthy Stadia, UK
Heartfile, Pakistan
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Instituto de Defesa de Consumidores/Brazilian Institute of Consumer Protection (idec), Brazil
Instituto Desiderata, Brazil
Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública/The National Institute of Public Health, Mexico
International Diabetes Federation (IDF), Belgium
International Institute for Legislative Affairs (IILA), Kenya
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Jamaica Youth Advocacy Network (JYAN), Jamaica
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Lake Health & Wellbeing, St. Kitts and Nevis
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National Stroke Aid (NASAID), Zambia
NCD Alliance (NCDA), Switzerland
Nipe Fagio, Tanzania
Non-communicable Diseases Alliance Kenya (NCDAK), Kenya
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Observatório Brasileiro de Conflitos de Interesse em Alimentação e Nutrição/Brazilian Observatory of Conflicts of Interest in Food and Nutrition (ObservaCoI), Brazil
Organización Multidisciplinaria para la Integración Social (OMIS), Uruguay
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Pakistan National Heart Association (PANAH), Pakistan
Perkumpulan Forum Warga Kota Indonesia/The Indonesia City Citizen Forum (FAKTA), Indonesia
Planet Sporting Club, France
Public Health Association of Australia (PHAA), Australia
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Qué Rico Es comer sano y de nuestra tierra (¡Qué Rico Es!), Ecuador
Quest For Growth and Development Foundation, Nigeria
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Red PaPaz, Colombia
Reconciliation and Development Association (RADA), Cameroon
Resolve to Save Lives (RTSL), USA
Rhode Island Public Health Institute, USA
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Salud Crítica, Mexico
SECTION27, South Africa
Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming, UK
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Tanzania Women Lawyers Association (TAWLA), Tanzania
The Campaign to Address the Ultra-Processed and Sugar-sweetened Endemic (The CAUSE), USA
The George Institute for Global Health, India
The Global Center for Legal Innovation on Food Environments, USA
The Heart & Stroke Foundation of Barbados (HSFB), Barbados
The Israeli Forum for Sustainable Nutrition, Israel
The SAMRC/Wits Centre for Health Economics and Decision Science (PRICELESS SA), South Africa
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Vital Strategies, USA
Vorágine, Colombia
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World Cancer Research Fund International, UK
World Obesity Federation (World Obesity), UK
World Public Health Nutrition Association (WPHNA), UK
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YLKI (Indonesian Consumers Organization), Indonesia

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