Gatorade Research Paper

Gatorade

Gatorade started in the summer of 1965 at the University of Florida. The assistant football coach gathered a group of physicians working at the university and asked them to figure out why so many of the football players were being affected by the heat. According to Gatorade.com, Dr. Robert Cade, Dr. Dana Shires, Dr. H. Hames Free and Dr. Alejandro de Quesada, discovered that heat was draining player’s electrolytes and carbohydrates. These could not be replaced by just water, so the researchers formulated a balance of carbohydrates and electrolytes that would replenish the key components lost through sweat. It was started in Florida because the heat was too extreme so a replenishing drink was needed to withstand the heat. Gatorade stimulates fluid absorption, helps the body maintain fluid balance, provides fuel to working muscles and helps enhance athletic performance. The map to the left shows where Gainesville, Florida is located which was the location where Gatorade was started.

Today, Gatorade is the official sports drink of the NFL, NBA, WNBA, AVP, Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, and Major League Lacrosse. It is also the official sports drink of numerous professional, collegiate and amateur teams and events throughout the world including the New York Marathon, Boston Marathon, Chicago Triathlon and Ironman World Championship. Gatorade is owned by PepsiCo., and is promoted by

athletes all over the world. Gatorade is still expanding today. It is the most researched beverage on the market for athletes and other active individuals.

Gatorade diffused very quickly throughout the US after the success of the Florida Gators football team. After the 1966 football season, Gatorade diffused to the University of Richmond and the University of Miami Ohio. It spread to most collegiate football teams by 1969 when it diffused to the NFL, in specific the Kansas City Chiefs. Pro teams began to use Gatorade on the fields due to the success of the Florida Gators. Every team in the NFL began to use Gatorade which led to Gatorade becoming the official sports drink of the NFL, in 1983. According to researcher Julie Boehlke, Gatorade expanded to Canada in 1984, Asia in 1987, and Europe and South America in 1988. This expansion was caused by the widespread success in the US so PepsiCo decided to expand to other countries. According to The Gatorade Company Fact Sheet, today, Gatorade has diffused to the market in over 80 countries worldwide, with 30 flavors in the US and a total of 50 flavors worldwide. Gatorade could be thought of as contagious or hierarchical diffusion. It could be contagious diffusion because it spread rapidly and widespread. It was contagious diffusion in the early 1970’s when it was spreading rapidly to sports teams but it could also be hierarchical diffusion because endorsed athletes spread it to people globally. The map above and to the left shows the countries where PepsiCo has cooperate locations, these are also locations where Gatorade is made and shipped.
Gatorade created a long lasting impact on the way people exercise and stay active and healthy in their lives.

Before Gatorade, people were struggling to withstand the heat and live a healthy life. According to researcher Jess Novak, people are able to go outside and live an active life knowing that they can withstand the heat. Sports are an important part of people’s lives whether or not they participate or spectate. Gatorade helps to keep the culture of sports alive, successful and beneficial to the governments in which, the sports teams are

located.
Gatorade started as a type of folk culture because the drink was created to help the Florida Gators football team play through extreme heat conditions. As a type of folk culture, it didn’t have much of an impact on the global scale but as it diffused and became a type of popular culture it impacted the lifestyle of people all over the globe.
Today, Gatorade is popular culture. It is still diffusing with the help of famous athletes endorsing the product and it is expected to keep diffusing throughout the near future.
Gatorade has many different types of cultural landscape around the world. They endorse athletes to place advertisements promoting their products. Shown above, Kevin Durant is endorsed by Gatorade to advertise their product. Their logo is a capital G with an orange lightning bolt incorporated on it, as shown above. Gatorade sells vending machines to companies, business, schools etc. which promotes their product and company while also selling their product. Gatorade also has stores worldwide, stores where they can sell apparel, their product in powder form, and the drink itself.