Grupo Modelo
Mexico City, Mexico · Est. 1925
Tally's Take
Why this matters
Home of Corona and Modelo. AB InBev owns it globally, but the US rights were sold off permanently — which is why Constellation prints money.
The Museum
Timeline
- 1925Founded
Grupo Modelo begins brewing in Mexico City.
- 2013Acquired
Acquired outright by AB InBev in 2013 — though the US rights sit permanently with Constellation Brands, an unusual split that made Constellation a beer giant.
The Beer Library
Beers
Corona Extra
Year-RoundPale Lager
Nobody can prove where the lime ritual came from. The best theory: a bartender's bet in 1981 that he could start a trend. If true, it is the most successful bar bet in history.
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Negra Modelo
Year-RoundVienna Lager
The Vienna lager style all but died in Austria — it survives because Austrian brewers followed Emperor Maximilian to Mexico in the 1860s. The empire collapsed; the beer stayed.
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Victoria
Year-RoundVienna Lager
Agustín Marendaz founded Victoria in 1865, two years before Canadian Confederation and decades before most other Mexican brands existed. Its signature yellow label carries Gambrinus, a mythical 'king of beer' figure borrowed from centuries-old European brewing folklore, presiding over the oldest beer still sold in the country.
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Follow the money
How it changed hands
1 recorded move- 1925Founded
- 2013Acquired
Acquired outright by AB InBev in 2013 — though the US rights sit permanently with Constellation Brands, an unusual split that made Constellation a beer giant.
Today the chain tops out at Anheuser-Busch InBev.
Show your working
Sources
- controlConfirmed
Grupo Modelo is controlled by Founder / family.
Anheuser-Busch InBev — SEC filing · U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission · 2026-02
PrimaryHigh reliabilityAccessed 2026-08-05Reviewed 2026-08-05
Only the claims above are sourced. Everything else on this page is the archive's own research and has not yet been tied to a document — which is worth knowing rather than hiding.
Straight answers
Common questions about Grupo Modelo
- Who owns Grupo Modelo?
- Grupo Modelo is owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev. Grupo Modelo is based in Mexico City, Mexico.
- Is Grupo Modelo still independent?
- No. Grupo Modelo is owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev and is no longer independent.
- When was Grupo Modelo acquired?
- 2013. Acquired outright by AB InBev in 2013 — though the US rights sit permanently with Constellation Brands, an unusual split that made Constellation a beer giant.
- When was Grupo Modelo founded?
- Grupo Modelo was founded in 1925 in Mexico City, Mexico.
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