Still no Coke on campus: Penn State intends to stick with Pepsi for another decade

Penn State is staying a Pepsi school.

After a six-month process to determine what soft-drink manufacturer would have “exclusive beverage pouring rights,” the land-grant university announced Wednesday that it intended to award Pepsi a new contract. That means visitors shouldn’t expect to find Coca-Cola products on any Penn State campuses anytime soon.

The deal isn’t done just yet but, when finalized, it’s expected to extend Pepsi’s partnership with Penn State another 10 years — which would take it through June 2033. The current agreement expires June 30, 2023.

“The new agreement is expected to provide additional monies to support student initiatives and strategic priorities, including scholarships, student projects, research, educational programs and sustainability goals, to name a few,” the university wrote in a news release.

It is unknown what the value of any current or future deal is. Because the university is a state-related school, such information is excluded under Pennsylvania’s Right-to-Know Law. But such rights have been lucrative elsewhere; Coca-Cola’s 15-year deal with Ohio State in 2018 was valued at $84.7 million.

According to Penn State leaders cited in the news release, they chose Pepsi over Coke because Pepsi “offered a more wholistic approach that closely aligns with university values and student-centric programs.” Pepsi also had more than twice as many product offerings as Coke.

Pepsi includes soft drinks such as Aquafina water, Gatorade, Mountain Dew, Mug Root Beer, Pure Leaf, Starbucks bottled beverages, and more.

Penn State’s partnership with Pepsi began in 1992.