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Who said people were drinking less? The world's largest brewer AB InBev reported strong second-quarter results on Thursday, as sporting events including the soccer World Cup and the Wimbledon tennis championships helped to drive up beer sales.

-- The Bud Light brewer reported underlying earnings of $1.21 a share, as revenue rose 5.6% from a year ago to $16.66 billion. Analysts were looking for earnings of $1.11 a share on revenue of $16.40 billion, according to a FactSet poll.

-- Beer sales volumes rose 1.1% from a year ago. The FIFA World Cup 2026 lifted sales of Michelob Ultra lager and brands also got a boost from other marquee sporting events including the French Open and Wimbledon tennis tournaments, the company said.

-- "Cheers to beer -- our performance this quarter reflects the strength of the beer category and the consistent execution of our strategy," CEO Michel Doukeris said.

-- AB InBev's American depositary receipts were up 33% for the year through Wednesday's close thanks to beer volume growth, which has eased Wall Street's worries about younger consumers drinking less.

What's Next: AB InBev stuck with its full-year guidance on Thursday. It expects its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization to grow in-line with its medium-term outlook of between 4% and 8%.

-- George Glover

-- Newsletter edited by Liz Moyer, Patrick O'Donnell, Rupert Steiner

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 30, 2026 06:54 ET (10:54 GMT)