The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority Board of Directors approved a two-year agreement yesterday naming Bud Light as the official beer of Navy Pier.

The deal with Anheuser-Busch runs through April 2010. It will earn Navy Pier $225,000.

"We solicited interest from major malt beverage companies, but Anheuser-Busch was the best fit and offered the best package," says Mark Thompson, the pier's senior director of marketing

Though Anheuser-Busch's bid was the highest, Thompson says, money was not the only deciding factor.

"Anheuser has a very keen insight into what Navy Pier needs and they have high activation in the pier," he says.

Bud Light also sponsors a free music beer garden with a capacity for over 500 guests, and arranges children's events with its team of Clydesdale horses.

From 1995 to 2004, Navy Pier had a contract with Miller Light. The pier currently is at the end of a three-year agreement with Bud Light.

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