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  • The Cola Wars have been raging for over a century now, turning soda into a multi-billion-dollar-a-year industry.

  • But just who are the titans of this industry, how did they get to where they are, and which of them reigns supreme?

  • We thought it would be fun to take a closer look at the two soft drink kings and see how they stack up next to one another in this episode of the Infographics Show, Coke vs Pepsi.

  • Everyone and their mother knows about Coca-Cola because it's literally everywhere.

  • Well, except for Cuba and North Korea.

  • But everywhere else, it's a well-known beverage, there is candy flavored like it, there are huge advertisements at the movies, and our favorite YouTubers gets sponsored to use their products.

  • Hell, in the U.S., it's not considered Christmas time until the Coke commercial comes on TV.

  • That said, we've all experienced going to a restaurant and being asked, "We don't have Coke, is Pepsi okay?”

  • Most of the time, we say yes without even thinking about it.

  • But today we're going to think about it: What actually is the difference?

  • Is Pepsi that much less popular?

  • Let's take a closer look.

  • Coca-Cola was created in a drugstore in Columbus, Georgia, in 1885.

  • Injured soldier John Pemberton invented Coca-Cola to help him get over his morphine addiction.

  • He did this by creating a French Coca Wine, which was made from wine, caffeine, and cocaine, thus giving it its name.

  • The idea was to lift his spirits and numb the pain with something other than morphine.

  • It was also sold as a treatment for indigestion, nerve disorders, headaches, and impotence.

  • Wine was removed from the product in 1886 to create the first true batch of Coca-Cola.

  • It should be noted that, yes, the product did contain cocaine well into the early 1900s, until people started fearing that black men were using cocaine to rape white women.

  • You gotta love history, folks.

  • Sadly, Pemberton's attempts to kick his morphine addiction were fruitless, and although he died an addict, he did leave behind a very tasty beverage.

  • Pepsi was also created for medical purposes, but almost a full decade later in 1893 in a small drug store in New Bern, North Carolina.

  • Pepsi was originally called "Brad's Drink" for the first 5 years after its creator, American Pharmacist Caleb Bradham.

  • The name was changed to Pepsi in 1898 as a play on the ingredients used in the original recipe, the digestive enzyme pepsin and kola nuts.

  • The creator of Pepsi also made bold claims about the medicinal properties of his new soft drink, insisting that it could aid digestion and boost energy.

  • A 12-oz can of Coca-Cola contains 39 grams of sugar, which is almost 8 teaspoons, whereas Pepsi contains 41g of sugar, closer to about 8.2 teaspoons.

  • Pepsi also uses sweeteners, making it the much sweeter beverage.

  • As far as caffeine goes, a can of Pepsi contains 38mg of it, whereas Coke has 34mg.

  • Annually, Coke sells 2.3 billion gallons of Coca-Cola Classic in the U.S. alone, which is about 6.4 million gallons every single day.

  • While Pepsi sells just over half that with 1.2 billion gallons of Pepsi Cola in the U.S., or about 3.4 million gallons a day.

  • But enough about drink recipes and cans of soda sold. How do Coke and Pepsi, as companies, compare to one another?

  • Every company has a market cap, which is basically a fancy way of saying how much the company is worth, and Coca-Cola's market cap is a whopping $180 billion.

  • Pepsi's market cap is $150 billion, which may not seem like a big difference, but $30 billion is a lot of cheddar.

  • The annual revenues of each company tells a very different story, though.

  • In 2015, Coke brought in $43.7 billion in revenue, while Pepsi brought in $63.1 billion.

  • So, how do these numbers add up?

  • Is it that more people buy Coke but Pepsi is more expensive?

  • Not quite.

  • We mustn't forget that Coca-Cola and Pepsi don't just sell soda. They are huge umbrella companies with quite a collection under their respective belts.

  • According to recent data, Coca-Cola owns 51% of the soft drink market, whereas Pepsi only owns 22% of it.

  • Coke claims to own a total of 35 different brands, including Fanta, Sprite, Powerade, Vitaminwater, and many others.

  • Pepsi owns 22 different brands, including 7up, Gatorade, Mountain Dew, and Doritos.

  • They even have a deal with Starbucks.

  • At the end of the day, Coke has a total of 3,500 products under its belt, while Pepsi has an estimated 1,200.

  • Some of you might be wondering, with all those companies and all that money, which company employs more people?

  • Coke employs a total of 130,600 people, and Pepsi employs a grand total of 274,000 people!

  • That's more than double.

  • This makes sense because Pepsi has greater product variety and higher net revenue, which means they can afford to hire more people.

  • So there we have it:

  • Coke and Pepsi are far more different than originally thought, but as we suspected, Coca-Cola is a much more popular and successful brand.

  • Only time, however, will tell which of these two corporate giants will come out on top in the end.

  • So, which do you think is the better soft drink?

  • Let us know in the comments!

  • Also, if you like our videos and want to help us make more of them, please head on over to Patreon and show your support.

  • Finally, as always, don't forget to like, subscribe, and share!

  • Thanks for watching, and see you next time.

The Cola Wars have been raging for over a century now, turning soda into a multi-billion-dollar-a-year industry.

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