Pepsi is using polar bears right now as a bold “cola war” move: they’re hijacking Coca‑Cola’s long‑time mascot to say, in story form, that even Coke’s own bear secretly prefers Pepsi Zero Sugar in a blind taste test.

Quick Scoop: What’s Going On?

  • The new Super Bowl spot, called “The Choice” , shows a polar bear in a blind taste test choosing Pepsi Zero Sugar over Coke’s zero‑sugar cola, then spiraling into a funny identity crisis about it.
  • Polar bears have been a Coca‑Cola icon since the early 1990s, so Pepsi using a very similar bear is a deliberate “steal the mascot” stunt, not a random creative choice.
  • The ad is part of a revived Pepsi Challenge idea: Pepsi wants to dramatize that when people don’t see the brand label, many say Pepsi tastes better.

In short: the bear isn’t just cute; he’s a walking, furry metaphor for “you thought you were a Coke person…until you actually tasted Pepsi.”

Why Is Pepsi Doing This?

1. Challenger-brand flex

  • Marketers describe the campaign as a classic “challenger brand” move: Pepsi uses its rival’s most recognizable asset to signal confidence and stir the rivalry back up.
  • Commentators compare it to using your opponent’s star player to score for your team—high‑risk, high‑signal, and something the number‑two player can attempt more easily than the market leader.

2. Turn Coke’s strength into Pepsi’s story

  • Coca‑Cola has invested decades into making polar bears feel warm, nostalgic, and Christmassy, which gives Pepsi an easy shortcut into viewers’ memories.
  • By showing that very familiar type of bear choosing Pepsi Zero Sugar, Pepsi essentially says: “Even the symbol of Coke knows Pepsi tastes better.”

3. Push Pepsi Zero Sugar as a growth engine

  • Pepsi executives have labeled Pepsi Zero Sugar as one of their big growth drivers and are “doubling down” with big, attention‑grabbing creative around it.
  • The blind taste‑test setup and the bear’s crisis are built to focus on taste specifically, not just vibes, making it feel like proof rather than a random joke.

How the Ad Tells the Story

  • The spot shows a blindfolded polar bear doing a side‑by‑side taste test between Coke’s zero sugar cola and Pepsi Zero Sugar, and he picks Pepsi.
  • After realizing what he’s chosen, the bear goes into therapy, wrestling with the idea that his whole identity has been tied to “the red brand.”
  • The use of Queen’s “I Want to Break Free” underlines the theme of breaking habits and labels in favor of personal preference.

Think of the bear as that friend who’s always sworn they’re a Coke person, then quietly admits, “Okay, in a blind test I picked Pepsi… now what does that say about me?”

Why It Feels So Familiar Online

  • Creatives and marketing writers note that this isn’t a random pivot for Pepsi—it fits decades of Pepsi positioning itself as the slightly more irreverent, joke‑cracking rival to Coke’s sentimental, “feel‑good” universe.
  • Articles and forum‑style discussions highlight how the ad mashes up two famous ad assets in one: the classic Pepsi Challenge and the Coke‑style polar bear.
  • On social and video platforms, people frame it as Pepsi “stealing” or “kidnapping” Coca‑Cola’s bear to reignite the soda war for the 2026 Super Bowl.

Different Ways People Are Reading It

  • Some viewers see it as hilarious and clever , praising the confidence it takes to essentially say “even Coke’s own mascot prefers us.”
  • Others think it’s a risky troll , wondering how far Pepsi can go with such a Coke‑coded character without it feeling too derivative or provoking legal/brand‑backlash conversations.
  • Industry voices mostly read it as on‑brand for Pepsi : playful, competitive, and designed to get everyone talking about taste again before and during the Super Bowl.

TL;DR

Pepsi is using a polar bear now because it’s the fastest way to tap into 30+ years of Coca‑Cola brand memory and flip it into a taste‑test story that says: “Even that bear picks Pepsi Zero Sugar.”

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.