Super Bowl LVIII is big beer’s prime-time opportunity to finally throw a touchdown to investors.

Up until this Sunday's marquee matchup in Las Vegas, the beer industry has largely been on defense the past two years.

U.S. beer shipments fell to a 25-year low in 2023, according to new data out of BofA Securities, as politically and culturally-driven boycotts and consumer tastes shifting to hard seltzers and liquor have pressured industry sales.

In the past two years alone, beer shipments have tanked 9% to 196 million barrels.

Investors have reacted in a sober manner.

Shares of pure-play beer brands Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD) and Corona-maker Constellation Brands (STZ) have gained a mere 3% each over the two-year stretch, lagging the S&P 500's 14% gain.

MolsonCoors (TAP) shares have bucked the trend, rising 20% amid a push into non-beer brands such as The Rock's Zoa energy drink line.

"The stakes are high [this year]," Bank of America analyst Peter Galbo told Yahoo Finance Live, as brewers look to "gain new entrants into the category."

Galbo says that execution this Super Bowl Sunday is "critical," especially for the still struggling Bud Light brand, writing that the "Super Bowl could be a venue to re-establish identity."

Recall Bud Light is still reeling from backlash last year tied to an endorsement on Instagram from transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.

Bud Light volume for the month of January plunged 29.5% year-over-year, while Budweiser volumes declined more than 15%, according to the latest data from Nielsen.

In an effort to lure back lost customers, Bud Light is aiming to return to its roots and reset the brand's image in its 60 second ads on Super Bowl Sunday. Channeling a pint of nostalgia, the beer giant will call its iconic Clydesdale horses out of the retirement barn in an ad dubbed "Old School Delivery."

It will mark one of three Super Bowl ads for Anheuser-Busch, with the other two showcasing good old- fashioned Budweiser and low calorie Michelob Ultra.

"We haven’t seen Bud Light turn the corner yet this year, but their Super Bowl ads are phenomenal, funny and are of the same humor that built Bud Light into America’s largest selling brand," Bump Williams, of long-time beverage consulting firm BWC, told Yahoo Finance by phone. "I think you'll see a positive impact on consumer appreciation of the brand."

Further helping Bud Light ahead of the Super Bowl: A former president with a big following of influential beer drinkers.