Traces the long and ferocious rivalry between Coke and Pepsi, centered on the âNew Cokeâ debacle of 1985. For almost a hundred years, Coke had been the undisputed leader in the multibillion dollar global soda industryâstodgy, predictable, but indisputably top dogâwhile Pepsi had been the upstart No. 2, forever poking at its big brother with cutting edge advertising. But in 1985, in a stranger-than-fiction twist, Coca-Colaâs executives took a step so daring that no one in either company could believe it: they changed the formula of the most popular beverage on the planet.