Which Coca-Cola mascot appeared in advertising as a friendly polar bear beginning in 1922?

The Coca-Cola polar bear became a recurring advertising mascot beginning in 1922.

The character first appeared in French Coca-Cola advertising and later became associated with the brand internationally. Polar bears gave Coca-Cola a memorable visual device for linking the drink with refreshment, family viewing, and winter imagery.

The mascot was not the same as Coca-Cola’s other famous seasonal figure, Santa Claus. Coca-Cola advertising also used Sprite Boy, an elf-like character introduced in the 1940s, but Sprite Boy and the polar bear served different visual roles.

Modern Coca-Cola polar-bear campaigns often show a family of bears rather than one fixed individual. Their appearance has changed across illustrations, print advertisements, television commercials, and digital campaigns, but the white bear remains one of the company’s best-known branded characters.