Subway is dropping Coca-Cola after nearly twenty years for this competitor

Joseph Lamour

The soda wars continue between two bubbly juggernauts.

On March 19, Subway announced a new, 10-year agreement with PepsiCo to supply beverages in U.S. restaurants starting Jan. 1, 2025. That means customers have just nine more months to wash down their Footlong Cookie with a Coca-Cola across the sandwich shops.

The sandwich giant has been serving Coca-Cola products for close to twenty years. "Coca-Cola has been a significant part of our U.S. franchisees’ business for nearly two decades, and we appreciate their partnership," a representative from Subway said.

In addition to the updated drinks offering, Subway says that its partnership with Frito-Lay (a wholly-owned subsidiary of PepsiCo) will also be extended through 2030, which means its snack and beverage portfolio are now together under one supplier, thus driving more efficiency across the system.

Under the new agreement, Subway will offer an assortment of PepsiCo beverages including (but not limited to):

  • Pepsi

  • Pepsi Zero Sugar

  • Mountain Dew

  • Starry

  • Tropicana

  • Lipton

  • Aquafina

  • Gatorade.

Franchisees will also have the option to offer a bigger selection of Gatorade flavors.

“The new agreement underscores Subway’s commitment to delivering better food and a better guest experience, which includes ensuring the brand’s beverage offerings align with guest preferences across demographics,” Subway writes in its press release, adding that the change will come with all-new beverage equipment provided to its restaurants.

This switch puts Subway on the less-populated side of the soda wars. While Pepsi is served at fast food chains including Taco Bell, KFC and Buffalo Wild Wings, more of the top fast food chains in the U.S. such as McDonald’s, Chick-fil-A and Burger King serve Coca-Cola products.

“The partnership with PepsiCo is an exciting milestone in our journey to become America’s favorite place to eat, drink and work,” said Doug Fry, president of Subway, North America in a press release. “It is a win-win for everyone, as it brings a delicious suite of beverage and snack choices to our guests, driving additional consideration of these menu items, while also providing cost-effective, streamlined solutions to our franchisees.”

Subway notes that its transition to Pepsi in its U.S. restaurants will start in 2025 but roll out over the course of several months. The United States will join Subway franchises in Canada, Germany, the Netherlands and others as Pepsi providers, when all is said and done.

In recent times, smaller chains have also made headlines by switching soda distributors — in the opposite direction, however. A day before Subway’s announcement, Midwest chain Skyline Chili announced it will start serving Coca-Cola products instead of Pepsi products starting in April, which caused longtime customers to complain on social media.

Culver’s also made the same switch in January 2023, confirming that it would be introducing Coca-Cola, which caused folks online to air their grievances across social media, with one saying the news “ruined (her) entire day.”

This article was originally published on TODAY.com

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