---
title: Coca-Cola Will Replace Pepsi at KFC's US Restaurants by Spring 2027
description: KFC's US restaurants start moving from Pepsi to Coca-Cola in January 2027, with every location switched by spring, as the chain works to revive US sales.
author: Darie Nani (Editor-in-Chief)
date: 2026-10-16T13:53:26.131Z
updated: 2026-10-16T13:53:26.148Z
canonical: https://www.sovereignmagazine.com/article/kfc-coca-cola-replaces-pepsi-us-restaurants
image: https://cdn.nanimediahouse.com/kfc-open-house-mckinney-restaurant-445492.webp
categories: Business
content_type: News
region: United States
publication: Sovereign Magazine
schema_type: Article
---

KFC will start swapping Pepsi for Coca-Cola drinks in its US restaurants in January 2027, and expects every US location to be serving Coca-Cola products by spring 2027. Dagmar Boggs, Coca-Cola's president of foodservice and on-premise for North America, said the deal "brings Coca-Cola and KFC together across the U.S. for the first time."

PepsiCo owned KFC until 1997, when [it spun the chain off with Pizza Hut and Taco Bell](https://www.yum.com/wps/portal/yumbrands/Yumbrands/footer-pages/faq) to form the company that became Yum! Brands, KFC's parent. KFC has not given financial terms or the length of the Coca-Cola agreement.

## KFC's US Sales Fell While Most of Its Other Markets Grew

Yum reported in July that KFC's US system sales fell 2% in the second quarter, excluding currency, and were down 2% for the year to date. The US and Canada were the only KFC markets in Yum's table where sales fell. Worldwide, [KFC's system sales rose 6% excluding currency to $9.6 billion](https://s2.q4cdn.com/890585342/files/doc_financials/2026/q2/Yum-Brands-Q2-26-Earnings-Release.pdf), with 10% growth in the UK, Asia and Latin America and 6% in China. The US made up 12% of KFC's system sales in 2025. Yum's other big US chain, Taco Bell, grew its US system sales 9% in the same quarter.

## KFC Put Drinks at the Center of Its New Menu

On June 15, KFC launched a refreshed brand identity and a new menu centered on boneless chicken, beverages and sauces, and it aims to have the core elements in place across its top 20 markets by the end of 2027. At Open House, its new test restaurant in McKinney, Texas, KFC is already serving iced coffees, boba, shakes and other new drinks. KFC says the Coca-Cola switch is part of what it calls the "Kentucky Fried Comeback" and that the deal will widen the choice of drinks in its US restaurants.

## FAQ

**Q: How many KFC restaurants are there?**
KFC had 34,747 restaurants at the end of June 2026, up 7% from a year earlier, and opened 660 new ones across 55 countries in the second quarter alone, according to Yum.

**Q: Where is KFC's US business based?**
In Plano, Texas. Yum decided in 2025 to relocate the KFC U.S. corporate office to KFC's global headquarters there.

**Q: What else has Yum changed this year?**
On June 16, 2026, Yum agreed to sell Pizza Hut: the business outside mainland China to LongRange Capital, a private equity firm, and Pizza Hut in mainland China to Yum China.