65 Years Ago, This Now-Massively Successful Soda Was Invented

There are various old-school sodas that time forgot, but popular beverage Sprite certainly isn't one of them. Talk about aging gracefully, Sprite turned 65 in 2026 and seems to be at the height of its existence. The drink ranked as the third most popular soft drink in America in 2024, beating Pepsi for the first time, and Sprite's market share has grown significantly. As of 2024, the drink garnered 8% of the U.S. carbonated soft drink market.

The beverage the world has come to know as Sprite originated in Germany in 1959 as "Fanta Klare Zitrone," which translates to "Fanta Clear Lemon." Coca-Cola's Fanta line of drinks was being produced in Germany at the time, and Sprite was originally part of that product line. In 1961, the Coca-Cola Company brought the soda to America and called it Sprite, named for a discontinued Coca-Cola mascot named Sprite Boy who often appeared in ads alongside Coke's classic Christmas Santa Claus.

When Sprite was created, it was for a simple reason — Coca-Cola wanted a lemon-lime beverage that would give 7UP a run for its money. Coke certainly succeeded and then some. Sprite has become a bigger seller than 7UP and most of the sodas in the U.S. market. It's the second-biggest seller in the Coca-Cola family of products, second only to Coke itself. Per 2026 data published by Statista Consumer Insights, 46% of Americans polled reported consuming Sprite during the preceding 12 months. 7UP lagged behind at 36%. While Sprite and 7UP might seem very similar at first blush, there are some differences between the two soft drinks that are, evidently, significant enough to consistently put Sprite far ahead of its competitor.

Coca-Cola struck gold with its lemon-lime drink. Within just six years of its debut, Sprite was selling in 39 countries.

Over the years, Sprite has spawned various offshoot drinks, like Sprite Tropical Mix, Sprite Cherry, Sprite Lymonade, and a popular recurring holiday flavor called Sprite Winter Spiced Cranberry. A product called Sprite Chill Cherry Lime, featuring a proprietary "unique cooling effect" that makes it even colder than regular Sprite (per The Coca-Cola Company), was originally meant to be only a limited-time flavor. But the innovative pop struck a chord with consumers, bringing in a whopping $50 million in retail sales within just 21 weeks of its debut. The drink also reportedly prompted active Sprite customers to buy 4.4% more Sprite than usual. Its success was enough to inspire The Coca-Cola Company to add it to the Sprite lineup's permanent roster.

While the elfin Sprite mascot the soda was named for was never used as its brand representative, Sprite (the beverage) has had plenty of celebrity endorsers over the years. Ads featuring hip-hop artists like LL Cool J, Kris Kross, and Missy Elliot have dotted the brand's marketing history, along with commercials featuring sports stars like Kobe Bryant and Grant Hill. Sprite made history in the 1980s by embracing the hip-hop culture with its advertising, at a time when the new music genre was considered a risky enterprise for brands to engage with. But Sprite dove in headfirst, booking rapper Kurtis Blow to star in a commercial, marking one of the first times a hip-hop performer ever appeared in a mainstream advertisement.