Phoebe Knight is a food reporter based in Toronto, Ontario. While there's not much she won't try, anything featuring hot dogs, noodles or ice cream truly have her heart. When not on the food scene, you can find her binge watching reality TV or thrifting her bank account away in Kensington Market.

<p>Did you know that the Toronto Blue Jays are <a href="https://dailyhive.com/toronto/toronto-blue-jays-heading-world-series" target="_blank">about to go to the World Series</a> for the first time since 1993?</p>
<p>I&#8217;m kidding, of course. The news of the Jays&#8217; biggest achievement since their back-to-back World Series wins in &#8217;92 and &#8217;93 is all anyone in Toronto — or maybe all of Canada — is talking about today.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s the type of moment in Toronto sports history that many folks in the city, including myself, have never experienced before, but while the majority of elated fans were flooding the streets or reminiscing on the team&#8217;s prior victories, my own food-and-beverage-oriented brain was hung up on one small detail unfolding in the Jays clubhouse.</p>
<p>Why are the Blue Jays showering each other in Budweiser rather than champagne to celebrate the victory?</p>
<p>Sure, everyone&#8217;s got their preference (if you&#8217;ve never tried subbing beer for prosecco in your mimosas, thank me later), and Bud is undoubtedly the budget-friendly option over bubbly, but surely that can&#8217;t be why the team submit themselves to frat party levels of stickiness after one of the most significant wins in franchise history.</p>
<p>The truth, it turns out, comes down to business, but the history behind it is a lengthy one.</p>
<p>The Toronto Blue Jays are sponsored by Labatt Brewing Company, the Canadian-headquartered brewery that represents big-name booze brands like Corona, Stella Artois, Palm Bay and, yes, Budweiser.</p>
<p>That&#8217;s why, upon the win, you could see an icy barrel stocked to the brim with bottles and cans of Budweiser within an arm&#8217;s reach of every Blue Jays player at any given time.</p>
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<p>Before you give the good, old-fashioned &#8220;of course it&#8217;s a corporate sponsor&#8221; roll of your eyes, the history of the Toronto Blue Jays and Labatt is one that goes deeper than a lump sum of cash and a contract.</p>
<p>That, and the beer brand&#8217;s in-stadium partnership, which allows you to buy your $6.50 beer at the Dugout Deals stand, so it&#8217;s not all bad, is it?</p>
<p>As it happens, Labatt played an instrumental role in the formation of the Toronto Blue Jays back in 1977, purchasing expansion rights for the team for $7 million (roughly $37 million today) in 1976, and maintaining a majority stake in the team up until 1995.</p>
<p>So, you <em>could</em> say that Labatt helped secure the Jays&#8217; first and only two World Series wins.</p>
<p>The team also has Labatt to thank, in part, for its name. Upon the purchase of the expansion team in 1976, a contest was held to decide the name of the team (which is also how our basketball team got saddled with the Raptors in a post-Jurassic Park dino-obsessed world).</p>
<p>Over 4,000 submissions were collected and, ultimately, the Blue Jays won. Aside from the team&#8217;s branding referencing the city&#8217;s blue-and-white sports teams, it was no coincidence that the team&#8217;s name and colours closely aligned with the look of Labatt&#8217;s flagship beer, Labatt Blue.</p>
<p>Rogers purchased the team and stadium in 2000, and while Labatt no longer owns the team, the beer brand remains a considerable sponsor. The Corona Rooftop Patio? Yep, Labatt.</p>
<p>The next time someone tells you that going to a Jay&#8217;s game isn&#8217;t all about the beer, you now have the license to inform them that, actually, it kind of is.</p>
<p>Who knows, maybe if our boys somehow manage to win the World Series, they&#8217;ll up the alcohol content and celebrate by dumping Cutwaters — another Labatt-owned brand — on each other.</p>
<p><span class="s1"><ul class="article-see-also"><strong>You might also like:</strong><li><a href='https://dailyhive.com/toronto/joe-carter-toronto-first-pitch-blue-jays-world-series' target='_blank'>Joe Carter expected to be in Toronto to throw first pitch in Blue Jays World Series game</a></li><li><a href='https://dailyhive.com/toronto/toronto-blue-jays-pitcher-world-series-ring-regardless-who-wins' target='_blank'>Ex-Toronto Blue Jays pitcher will get World Series ring regardless of who wins</a></li><li><a href='https://dailyhive.com/toronto/carney-trump-blue-jays-world-series' target='_blank'>Mark Carney sends Trump a dig ahead of Toronto Blue Jays World Series</a></li></ul></span></p>


Toronto

The Toronto Blue Jays are heading to the World Series for the first time since 1993, but opted against the typical champagne celebrations.