As citizens of St. Louis collectively try to catch their breath and make dollars and sense of the sale of Anheuser-Busch Cos. to Belgian-based InBev, sports business citizens are doing the same.

According to estimates by trade publication Beer Marketer's Insights, A-B's U.S. spending on marketing exceeded $378 million last year. Nielsen Media Research and the Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Journal show the beer maker spent $218,210,715 alone on advertising during sporting programming. That number dwarfed the next biggest sports spender — Chevrolet — by more than $45 million.

"If you're asking me if they will spend more or spend less that's, maybe in this case, the $64 billion question," said Terry Lefton, editor at large for SportsBusiness Journal. "The real answer is there are no real answers right now.

"But it's really accurate to say beer is the lifeblood of sports and Bud is sports' biggest vendor. So you can imagine if you're running a team or some other kind of sports property, you're pretty nervous right now."

Nowhere is the association between A-B and sports more obvious than right here in the River City. Historically the No. 1 corporate citizen in town, the brewery also has been the No. 1 purveyor of sports marketing dollars in St. Louis, on professional and amateur levels.

The epitome of A-B's sports personality is found at Busch Stadium. Although no longer the principal owner of the Cardinals, as it was from 1953 to 1996, the company remains a financial cleanup hitter for the organization's lineup. From the "Busch" name atop the stadium, the "Budweiser" signs in the stadium, the Clydesdales on opening day, the radio and television broadcasts to the "cold beer" hawked by vendors, the Cardinals and A-B are joined at the hip.

Like most people not privy to the negotiations between A-B and InBev, Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. is still absorbing the particulars. But he is optimistic the relationship between the team and the "House That Brito Bought," i.e. InBev chief executive Carlos Brito, will remain vital to both.

"I don't know the details of the proposed transaction," DeWitt said. "I know InBev has said St. Louis will continue as a headquarters and I would assume that would be good for the Cardinals."

One thing seems certain, the transition taking place at A-B is not likely to make immediate ripples. The sponsorship deals the company has in place with the Cardinals, Rams and Blues are mostly tied to multiyear contracts.

Could Busch Stadium become "Beck's Ballpark"? Not likely.

Title sponsorship names on stadiums have changed often over the years. Before the 2004 season, the name of the San Francisco Giants' ballpark changed from Pacific Bell Park to SBC Park. San Antonio-based telephone giant SBC has a 24-year contract for the naming rights at the stadium. After absorbing Pacific Bell, SBC chose to put its name out front and the switch was made.

The naming of Busch Stadium was part of a 20-year marketing deal the Cardinals and A-B reached in 2004, an arrangement that includes choice signage at the ballpark, as well as exclusive alcoholic-beverage sponsorship for Cardinals radio and TV broadcasts. DeWitt said the idea that A-B products have "pouring rights" is a misnomer. Other beers are currently sold at the ballpark.

Lefton speculated the Cardinals, in the wake of the A-B ownership change, might be able to revisit the stadium name deal. "Every, if not 99 percent, of these sponsorship deals has a clause that says if there is a change of ownership, the deal is moot, or at the option of the property," he said. "So conceivably, your Cardinals could go back and say, 'All right, there's a change in ownership, we need a new contract.' That's just to say that it could happen, not necessarily to say that it will happen."

In the current economic environment, it seems unlikely the Cardinals would be interested in exercising such a clause, even if it existed and if the InBev acquisition was applicable. At the same time, the club might be obligated to approve a reasonable request for a name change.

But Brito has emphasized that the St. Louis brewery, which was the world headquarters for A-B, would continue as InBev's United States hub and continue in its present stature in the community. From a local promotional standpoint, there would seem to be, at least where the stadium is concerned, a "not broke, don't fix" factor.

"Obviously, once the ownership and management structure becomes clear, we'll want to sit down with the new group and talk to them about the relationship with the Cardinals," DeWitt added.

"A-B's association with the Cardinals has been very important for over 50 years, and we would expect it to continue to be a terrific relationship and remain very important to the franchise."

Other sports executives in town echoed the sentiments. Fox Sports Net telecasts both the Cardinals and the hockey Blues, and does so largely through a relationship with A-B and the Bud Sports Productions. FSN vice president and general manager Jack Donovan said the brewery and sports in St. Louis should continue its strong association.

"We expect it to be business as usual for the most part," said Donovan, whose network will broadcast 132 Cardinals games this season. "The plan now is for this to be the U.S. headquarters for their operation, so St. Louis will still be a vital market to the brewery and the Cardinals and Blues, and continue to be a great partnership for the brewery to maintain.

"I guess everybody has to have reason for concern, I suppose. But at the end of the day, we're not expecting any big changes and it's a very logical partnership — local sports and Anheuser-Busch."

The Blues just recently inked a five-year deal with A-B, which includes Scottrade Center signage and promotional rooms like the "Bud Light Party Zone."

St. Louis Rams executive vice president and general counsel Bob Wallace said the football team also has a multiyear, "substantial deal" with A-B.

For the immediate future, Wallace said he expects "business as usual." For the long haul, Wallace added: "I don't think anyone knows exactly what impact this will have."

One thing is certain, it is difficult to separate A-B's position as the country's largest brewer from its connection to sports advertising. Moreover, Lefton pointed out, there is another giant beer business deal — the merger of SAB Miller and Molson Coors — that promises to play a significant role in how InBev proceeds. There may be a reluctance to abandon advertising turf to create opportunities for the competition.

"The dynamics of the other guys has got to come into play," Lefton said. "One clearly will impact the other. And there's such a vital economic contributor, no one wants to say anything on the record."

In other words, no one has caught their breath, just yet.

doneill@post-dispatch.com | 314-340-8186