By Focusing On Sports El Bandito Yankee Tequila Is Quickly Making A Name For Itself
El Bandito Yankee Tequila has achieved the seemingly impossible in just a few short years. It has broken out of a crowded tequila field full of sparkling celebrity brands and become a major player in one of the hottest spirits categories these days, tequila. This feat was achieved by building the brand with multiple partnerships around America’s thriving professional sports landscape and leveraging its founder’s strengths from the start.
Launched in the summer of 2021 by former NFL player Jim Bob Morris and NHL Hall of Famer Chris Chelios, the foray into the sports world makes sense. The Chicago-based company was able to tap into the Midwest market early on because of Chelio’s history in the region – he spent large parts of his career with the Chicago Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings. But the two men also had bigger plans for their brand, and to attract drinkers they would have to look and play outside of hockey to win.
“We went into this market with a fervor like anything else we’ve ever done,” says Morris. “We don’t know how to do things differently. Both Chris and I are driven by success. When we decided to start our business, we both knew that if we focused on the world of sports, we would instantly connect with the world of sports consumers and get our product into many hands right away. Everyone at a sporting event wants to have fun and we can help them with that.”
A serial entrepreneur, Morris dove headlong into the business world after leaving the NFL in 1987. He quickly found success and today runs a variety of businesses, from Morris Packaging to sports betting platform Wanna.com. When the two friends came up with the idea for El Bandito Yankee after a night out, named after a line in the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, they were looking for a distiller that would create a superior liquid that they could put their name behind.
They struck gold at El Viejito Distillery in the heart of Jalisco, Mexico. Using fully matured Weber Blue Agave, their tequila is handcrafted using traditional, centuries-old methods by Master Distiller Karina Rojo. The resulting liquid contains no additives and reflects the brand’s focus on producing ultra-premium tequila at an affordable price. Their Blanco is $39.99 and their Reposado is $44.99.
“To the chagrin of my accountant, this was a fully self-funded venture from day one. As a lead investor, I knew we had to make sure our bottles hit the sweet spot in terms of price and quality. I’m a big Steven Covey fan. I’ve always believed in starting any business with a goal in mind and working backwards to get the results you want,” says Morris. “There are so many high-priced bottles filled with good tequila these days that I believe they’re cornering themselves. If we’re going to make a splash in the sports world, our tequila has to be affordable for most people.”
El Bandito Yankee’s reach in the sports world could be unparalleled for any company, not just an alcohol brand, to be reached so quickly. They’ve teamed up with college football’s hula bowl, with the NHL, NBA, NFL, and MLB teams, and the UFC. They were pouring drinks just outside the stadium at Super Bowl XVII and up the street at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, a PGA Tour event.
A race car with the El Bandito Yankee foil.
El Bandito Yankee tequila.
They have also turned their focus to the world of motorsport. After dipping their toes into the NHRA for the first time, they made a giant step into NASCAR by being named the Official Tequila of Phoenix Raceway. They have other venues and events in mind in the near future.
“We are here to disrupt the market. We want to do that every day. The racing world is ripe for a brand like ours. We were created for people who go to the race track,” says Morris. “We are the official tequila of race day and we will continue to evolve. We came to win and we’re not content not to. That’s why we’re so attracted to racing; our tequila and the other products that we’ll be releasing soon.”
As El Bandito Yankee continues its meteoric run, consumers can expect to see it more and more frequently. For a brand with the slogan “So Smooth It’s Criminal” you should expect nothing less.
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