LAS VEGAS (June 23, 2008) – Sean Sears, 23, of Chicopee, Mass. emerged from hand-to-hand combat with more than 300 of the nation’s finest Rock Paper Scissors players to claim the 2008 Bud Light/USA Rock Paper Scissors League (USARPS) Championship and its $50,000 first prize Sunday night in Las Vegas.

The third annual tournament, to be aired Monday, Oct. 6 as part of a special edition of FSN’s Best Damn Sports Show Period, took place June 21-22 at the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino, where competitors from all corners of the United States converged to compete for the title of America’s best Rock Paper Scissors player. Participants, all age 21 or older, punched their tickets for Vegas by winning regional Bud Light-sponsored USARPS tournaments contested in local markets throughout the country.

Before spending his newfound wealth, Sears will embark upon an intense, two month training regimen leading up to the inaugural International Rock Paper Scissors Federation (IRPSF) Championship to be held in Beijing, China during the Summer Olympics. There, Sears will compete against Rock Paper Scissors champions from Canada, Guam, Hong Kong, and Ireland for global recognition as the world’s best Rock Paper Scissors player.

“Bud Light congratulates Sean on winning one of the most prestigious titles in sports,” said Rick Leininger, director, Bud Light. “The Bud Light/USARPS League Championship is all about competition, camaraderie, and most importantly, fun times. And what’s more fun than a trip to Vegas, $50,000 and a chance to represent our country on the global stage? The international finals in Beijing offer an ideal culmination to the most thrilling season of Rock Paper Scissors to date.”

2008 Bud Light / USA Rock Paper Scissors League Crowns Winner

“Without question Sean is the most polished champion in the storied history of this colossal event,” said USARPS League Commissioner Matti Leshem.  “With the poise and talent Sean displayed during the regional tourney in Springfield, Mass and here at the U.S. finals, anything short of gold in Beijing would rock the RPS community.”

Based in St. Louis, Anheuser-Busch is the leading American brewer, holding a 48.5 percent share of U.S. beer sales. The company brews the world’s largest-selling beers, Budweiser and Bud Light. Anheuser-Busch also owns a 50 percent share in Grupo Modelo, Mexico’s leading brewer, and a 27 percent share in China brewer Tsingtao, whose namesake beer brand is the country’s best-selling premium beer. Anheuser-Busch ranked No. 1 among beverage companies in FORTUNE Magazine’s Most Admired U.S. and Global Companies lists in 2008. Anheuser-Busch is one of the largest theme park operators in the United States, is a major manufacturer of aluminum cans and one of the world’s largest recyclers of aluminum cans. For more information, visit www.anheuser-busch.com.

USA Rock Paper Scissors League (www.usarps.com) is the governing body of the sport in the U.S. The league was founded in 2005 by Matti Leshem and Andrew Golder to bring rules and structure to the sport in the U.S., and has hundreds of members and affiliate Rock Paper Scissor cells nationwide.