COLA
 |
| Introduced: 2015 |
| Retired: N/A |
| Shortcut: GBcola (FFZ) gatorbCola (Twitch) |
| Source: Product sold by Cott Beverages |
COLA is a canned beverage produced by Cott Beverages in the 2010's. In the "mythos" of the Gatorbox world COLA is the show's primary -- and only -- sponsor. As such the drink is frequently shown off, sometimes in very impractical ways.
History
COLA made its on-camera debut some time in 2015. Prior to that it was common for Draco and his guests to casually drink pretty much anything on the stream, though after he saw the brandless "COLA" cans in a Walmart Draco quietly replaced all of the beverages seen on the show with COLA until someone noticed. As time went on a story was built around the COLA drink that defined it as Gatorbox's primary sponsor which explained how frequently and heavily it was featured on the show. Naturally, neither COLA nor the company who made it were actually sponsors of Gatorbox; the joke behind the meme is that something as generic as "COLA" is incapable of being a sponsor. The can design is something more along the lines of what you would see in a TV show where the drink "product placement" wasn't bought. (And as luck would have it, COLA has been spotted by fans in both My 600 Pound Life and Better Call Saul.)
Since its introduction in 2015 nothing else has been permitted as an on-screen drink other than COLA or the other products bottled by Cott Beverages. Said products include a diet version of COLA as well as "GRAPE" and "LEMON-LIME". All three products were introduced on stream with various skits. COLA itself has been featured in numerous gags ranging from ornate stacks of 12-packs to Draco drinking straight from an open 3 liter bottle. (On hangout and "chill" streams outside of the main Friday shows, Draco is commonly seen drinking plain water from a glass most of the time. This is to prevent unnecessary wear on the prop cans used on the show.)
COLA has not been sold in stores since early 2016 following Cott's acquisition by Mexican beverage conglomerate Refresco. Prop cans have been used on set ever since. They are commonly filled with water, however in the event of a skit or gag that would require pouring the drink out of its can the props are instead refilled with regular soda to maintain the illusion.
Legacy
"COLA as a show sponsor" is one of Gatorbox's longest-running inside jokes. A can of COLA was added as an emoticon in the channel's inaugural set of FrankerFaceZ icons in 2015 and remains active to this day. In 2019 the emote was copied over to the roster of official Twitch emoticons for the Gatorbox channel making it a global emote for subscribers. A glowing golden can of COLA (gatorbGold) was added in 2021 when animated emoticons were introduced on the Twitch platform. A collection of COLA, GRAPE, and LEMON-LIME cans exists as an emote as well (GBtrifecta).
In order to raise funds to purchase a Nintendo Switch and Super Mario Maker 2 for Your Level Sucks, Draco auctioned off an authentic screen-used COLA can prop among other props and memorabilia. The can was placed inside of an acrylic display case and came with a stained wood stand featuring an engraved placard noting it as an official prop. The display was also autographed by Draco.
Draco has a single unopened can of COLA in his possession and has said that it will eventually be consumed on Gatorbox's final broadcast.