A beloved Budweiser duo is back in action for Super Bowl LVIII with a new commercial featuring the Clydesdales and a Labrador retriever delivering a dose of nostalgia for beer fans during the big game.
"Good Morning America" got an exclusive look at the new ad on Wednesday along with a special visit in Times Square from one of the company's star Clydesdales, Olaf.
All the star-studded Super Bowl ads airing during the big game
Since their inaugural Super Bowl spot in 1975, the Budweiser Clydesdales have risen to icon status among advertisers, and this year's spot honors the American lager maker's legacy as "a brand that always delivers in the moments that matter."
In their 46th Super Bowl ad appearance, the Budweiser Clydesdales emerge from the stables and nudge a delivery driver to help bring beer to a small town's local bar as supplies run short amid a seemingly insurmountable roadblock of closed roads due to snow.
The delivery truck driver and his colleague, played by Fred Dana -- a real Budweiser wholesaler of more than three decades -- load the traditional wooden Budweiser hitch with beer before the team heads out into the snow.
From the small-town bar, a Labrador hears the Clydesdales struggling to navigate the storm and runs outside to guide them the rest of the way. The triumphant journey ends with a safe arrival into the town of cheering patrons and bargoers celebrating with Budweiser in hand.
Academy Award-nominated filmmaker and Emmy Award-winning commercial director Henry Alex Rubin directed the "Old-School Delivery" ad.
"Budweiser has been synonymous with the Super Bowl for decades and the broadcast continues to be a very special moment for our brand and a core pillar of our advertising strategy," Kristina Punwani, head of marketing at Budweiser USA, said in a statement. "We knew there was no better way to show Budweiser's continued commitment to delivering for its fans than with our biggest celebrities."
Anheuser-Busch teased the new commercial with a timeless message of resilience on social media ahead of the commercial, which airs in full on game day, Feb. 11.
As an extension to the Super Bowl spot, the Budweiser Clydesdales will also play a pivotal role on the ground in Las Vegas through community engagement activities.
The St. Louis, Missouri-based brewery first introduced the Clydesdales in 1933 as a symbol of quality, heritage and tradition for Anheuser-Busch following the repeal of Prohibition. That year, August A. Busch Jr. and Adolphus III surprised their father August A. Busch Sr. with the gift of a six-horse Clydesdale hitch reminiscent of the days of the traditional beer wagon, the company shared with "GMA."
Since their introduction, the horses have been used to make thousands of ceremonial deliveries, but today the Budweiser Clydesdales have three traveling teams -- known as hitches -- that spend approximately 300 days on the road per year traveling across the U.S.
As fans have seen in previous Super Bowl commercials, each hitch of horses travels with a dalmatian, who traditionally acted as the original guard of the wagon when drivers went inside to make deliveries.
To join a Clydesdale hitch, a horse must be at least 3 years of age and stand approximately 6 feet tall at the shoulder.
Budweiser Clydesdales weigh an average 2,000 pounds, must be bay in color, have four white legs and a blaze of white on the face.
A single Clydesdale can consume as much as 20 to 25 quarts of feed, 40 to 50 pounds of hay and 30 gallons of water per day.
The Budweiser Clydesdales have been part of Anheuser-Busch television ads dating back to the 1950s.
