Just a few years ago, sports drinks were dominated by the two “ades”--Gatorade and Powerade. Though other drinks tried to compete, they could not trump these two powerhouses and eventually fell unnoticed by the wayside. Now the market includes a much wider variety of sports beverages targeting a greater range of needs, ages and personalities. From kids’ sports drinks to coconut water, the sports drink market is growing in size and adopting beverages that traditionally fit within other categories.
Current Trends
There are a few distinct trends in sports drink formulation. The first and most notable involves categorizing beverages into segments that cater to the needs of athletes by type. Gatorade Tiger (with l-theanine for focus), though now discontinued, was a prime example and captured an audience that was previously lost in a sea of products geared towards endurance athletes and team sports. Another example is the brand new Powerade Play for kids. Play was formulated for kids, but with moms in mind. It contains 20% of the Daily Value (DV) of four B vitamins, 100% DV of vitamin C, 20% DV of zinc, a trademarked electrolyte system and 25% less sugar. Children have a greater risk of dehydration and heat illness than adults and require products made especially for them, making Play a smart addition to the Powerade line.