At the end of June, students at a center in Manresa, near Barcelona, celebrate the close of the school year with soft drinks for kids and beers for adults to cope with the heat. The event organizers choose Estrella Galicia. In the heart of Spain’s brewing landscape, this regional favorite is enjoyed far from its home base. This anecdote shows how beer groups, once closely tied to their origin, push to grow across the country. The competition also plays out on supermarket shelves where brands line up, and shelves offer varieties from roasted styles to historic IPAs. “The industry is at a strong moment and is consolidating,” notes Jacobo Olalla, managing director of the Spanish Brewers association, which brings together the main producers.
From family businesses to multinational groups and independent producers, Spain hosts a diverse map of beer production. The major players reported 2021 revenues around 4.7 billion euros despite pandemic restrictions. Inflation did not slow the sector; many brands expanded in 2022. Mahou closed the year with a turnover of 1,743 million euros, up 18.4 percent, marking a record. Damm group saw sales rise 26 percent to 1.876 billion euros. Hijos de Rivera, owner of Estrella Galicia, reached about 700 million euros in turnover, a 20 percent increase. Ágora, the Aragonese group behind Ámbar, achieved sales of 212.5 million euros, up 25 percent from 2021.
Cerveceros de España, the organization representing beer makers, confirms 2022 as a recovery year after Covid, which hit hotels hardest. The sector raised production by 7.9 percent to 41.1 million hectoliters in 2022. Roughly 90 percent of Spain’s beer is consumed locally, so each company’s market share mirrors its local production. In 2022, the leading producer by hectoliters was Mahou with 12.8 million; Grupo Damm followed with 11.34 million; Hijos de Rivera produced 4.81 million; Cervecera de Canarias 1.07 million; and Grupo Ágora 0.88 million. Independent brewers collectively produced about 0.14 million.
Spain has become Europe’s second largest brewer after Germany. The market is in a period of consolidation. Before the pandemic, about 70 percent of beer was consumed in hospitality venues and 30 percent at home. Now the split is roughly 60 percent in bars and 40 percent at home, says Jacobo Olalla, CEO of Cerveceros de España.
Beer lovers remain loyal to traditional Spanish brands, even those acquired by foreign multinationals. Victoria Labajo, professor of Marketing and Market Research at Universidad Pontificia Comillas, notes that about 90 percent of beer consumed in the country is produced locally using national raw materials.
growth strategies
In Spain, the big groups began with local products and gradually expanded to compete nationwide. They pursued growth through acquisitions, marketing, and sponsorship of sports and festivals. Estrella Galicia increased advertising to raise its profile. The president of Hijos de Rivera disclosed that 12 percent of the budget goes to advertising, above the industry average of 10 percent. Estrella Damm expanded outside the east by acquiring Cervezas Victoria in Malaga and Madrid. A smaller player like Ágora, owner of Ámbar, aims to broaden its footprint in Madrid and Barcelona. Ten years ago, the group started expanding beyond Aragon into Navarra, La Rioja, and the Basque Country, with solid numbers in Álava, Córdoba, Valencia, and Castellón, according to company sources.
Regional brands such as Victoria from Malaga or Turia from Valencia have extended their reach across Spain thanks to large groups financing distribution, advertising, and sponsorships. NielsenIQ’s Sebastián Rodríguez-Correa emphasizes that these regional brands are now national players through strategic marketing and acquisition.
Damm has also sponsored Cervezas Victoria, and Victoria has been the official sponsor of Spain’s national football teams since 2021, with a renewal for the next four years.
A Dutch group re launched Heineken’s El Águila beer in 2019, produced in Madrid since 1900, and 2022 sales rose 51 percent to 1.0 million units. Kantar reports reaching about 6 million households. The market has shown a shift toward choosing brands with broad regional appeal. Dutch sources say El Águila is becoming a preferred brand in many regions.
Large brewers now operate almost at a national scale. Brands like Mahou and Estrella Galicia are no longer seen as regional just as they broaden their geographic footprint while maintaining a strong regional foundation. About 55 percent of Mahou’s sales are in the Community of Madrid, Estrella Galicia concentrates around Galicia with 25 percent, and the Alhambra brand moves up to 40 percent in Andalusia. Regional preferences still influence consumption, but inflation has pushed brands to seek growth beyond their traditional zones, notes Rodríguez-Correa of NielsenIQ. He adds that nationalization of major brands was already on the radar before the pandemic.
The push to attract customers has intensified. Madrid’s Mahou recently acquired a 51 percent stake in the MadCool festival, expanding its reach as 45 percent of its sales are now abroad. Estrella Damm, born in Barcelona in 1876, widened its Mediterranean presence and now reports that about 30 percent of activity is international, up from 1.5 percent in 2007.
Estrella Galicia has funded growth through investments and advertising. In 2017, the brand reported 465 million euros in revenue, with a goal of 1 billion euros in sales by 2024, supported by aggressive marketing campaigns. The brand’s campaigns feature recurring characters and sponsors across sports, including MotoGP. In 2022, the group increased investments to 153.4 million euros and aims to accelerate growth through 2024, with inorganic growth on the horizon. Rivera notes that it will be time to consider more acquisitions after reaching that milestone.
DataCentric’s digital study, based on nearly 40,000 surveys, shows that residents in Asturias, Cantabria, the Basque Country, Castilla y León, Comunidad Valenciana, and the Balearic Islands favored the Galician brand in 2023.
Ágora followed a similar expansion strategy, aiming for broader national exposure with a more modest budget than Estrella Galicia. The company launched its first national advertising campaign six years ago and has continued with bold proposals ever since.
Competition has driven brands to innovate. Not every new variety succeeds, and many disappear from the market. The work environment demands constant adaptation. It is no longer enough to be the leader in a single region. Francisco J. Lorente, professor at ESIC business school, notes that regional brand presence in city events strengthens the bond between brand and society and that the national scene now requires ongoing evolution.