History of Soda Timeline

The Root Glass Company of Terre Haute, Indiana won Coca-Cola's design contest with the iconic fluted contour bottle, intended to be recognizable even in the dark or when broken, becoming one of history's most famous package designs.

Pepsi went bankrupt in 1923 after speculating wildly on rising sugar prices following World War I. Roy Megargel later acquired the trademark, and Charles Guth relaunched the brand in the 1930s.

Image source: PepsiCo

During the Great Depression, Pepsi introduced 12-ounce bottles priced at five cents, double Coca-Cola's six-ounce offering for the same price, dramatically boosting sales and establishing the value-based Cola War strategy.

Max Keith, head of Coca-Cola Germany, developed Fanta using available wartime ingredients like whey and apple fiber after trade embargoes cut off Coca-Cola syrup supplies. Fanta was later adopted globally by Coca-Cola.

Image source: Fanta

Royal Crown introduced Diet Rite in 1958, the first major diet soft sweetened with saccharin and cyclamate, opening an entirely new market segment that competitors soon rushed to enter.

Image source: Diet soft drink

Coca-Cola launched Sprite as its answer to 7 Up, quickly becoming the leading lemon-lime soda in the United States and expanding the cola giants beyond the cola category.

Image source: Sprite (drink)

Coca-Cola entered the diet soda market with Tab, sweetened with saccharin. It dominated the diet segment until Diet Coke arrived, becoming a cultural icon of the 1960s and 1970s.

Image source: Tab (drink)

Diet Coke launched in the United States, becoming the first new product to use the Coca-Cola brand name. It was an instant success, quickly overtaking Tab and becoming one of the best-selling diet sodas ever.

Image source: Diet Coke

Pepsi enlisted stars like Michael Jackson while Coke countered with Max Headroom, escalating the famous 'Cola Wars.' The rivalry defined 1980s pop culture and drove unprecedented marketing spending.

Image source: Cola wars

Coca-Cola reformulated its flagship drink as New Coke to combat Pepsi's taste-test advantage, sparking massive consumer backlash. Within 79 days, the company restored the original formula as 'Coca-Cola Classic.'

Image source: New Coke

Pepsi launched Crystal Pepsi, a caffeine-free clear cola riding consumer demand for purity. Despite heavy hype, it flopped within two years, though it retains cult status and saw brief revivals decades later.

Image source: Crystal Pepsi

Coca-Cola launched Surge to compete with Mountain Dew, part of a wave of high-caffeine, citrus-flavored 'extreme' sodas marketed toward teenagers with aggressive, edgy branding.

Small producers began making artisanal sodas with natural ingredients, cane sugar, and unique flavors like ginger and hibiscus, appealing to consumers seeking alternatives to mass-produced colas.

Image source: Craft soda

Mexico banned junk food and soda sales in schools amid rising obesity concerns, signaling growing government scrutiny of soft drinks worldwide and presaging broader regulatory actions.

Voters in Berkeley, California approved Measure D, the first soda tax in the United States, imposing a penny-per-ounce levy on sugary drinks and inspiring similar measures in cities and countries worldwide.

Coca-Cola rebranded Coke Zero as Coca-Cola Zero Sugar with a reformulated recipe closer in taste to original Coca-Cola, reflecting the industry pivot toward low- and zero-sugar offerings.

Image source: Coca-Cola Zero Sugar

The United Kingdom implemented its sugary drink tax, prompting many manufacturers including Coca-Cola and Ribena to reformulate recipes with less sugar rather than pass costs to consumers.