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How the Whopper reignited the burger wars

By CNN

New York (CNN) — For the first time in a while, Burger King is living up to its name.

A revamped Whopper helped the chain post an 8.5% increase in US same-store sales last quarter, outpacing McDonald’s by the largest margin in more than a decade. Burger King also surpassed Wendy’s in US sales this year to become the country’s second-biggest burger chain. (McDonald’s remains firmly in first.)

In last week’s earnings call, Burger King US was highlighted as a “standout performer” in the portfolio of parent company Restaurant Brand International, which also owns Popeyes and Tim Hortons. Executives praised its focus on value meals as well as a multi-year marketing and renovation campaign.

Another aspect that helped: Making Tom Curtis, Burger King’s president, the face of the brand.

Curtis starred in the Whopper’s relaunch ad as well as another video showing him joyfully eat a Whopper. The latter was a tongue-in-cheek response to strong social media criticism of McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski’s awkward attempt at eating a Big Arch.

Curtis “seems to have resonated with people,” said Robert Byrne, senior director of consumer research at Technomic.

Burger King is scoring better with consumers in terms of relatability in advertising, as well as brand image and food quality, than at any point since 2019, according to Technomic’s consumer research.

That’s partly the result of actions by Curtis, like taking customer’s phone calls and jabbing at a competitor on social media.

“Say what you will about the ‘burger bite social media flap,’ but that stuff pays dividends in the longer run,” Byrne told CNN, adding that “there’s a new tone and new tenor” to the burger wars.

Sales snapshot

Burger King’s growth is a stark contrast compared to its competitors.

McDonald’s US sales cooled to 0.8% and traffic declined amid sluggish operations caused by a complex array of deals and new launches

CEO Kempczinski said on last week’s earnings call that McDonald’s US business results were “below our expectations.” As a result, the chain named a new US president and signaled it wanted to make changes quickly.

Then there’s Wendy’s, whose woes keep continuing: The chain posted a dismal 7% decline in sales.

CEO Bob Wright sharply criticized the company on Friday’s earnings call, saying that “our quality … has eroded, our value proposition has weakened, and we have not consistently delivered the experience customers expect from Wendy’s.”

Meanwhile, RBI Executive Chairman Patrick Doyle praised Burger King’s ability to win over fickle consumers.

“Today, guests have more choices than ever before for where to eat and where to spend their dining dollars and every day more and more of them are choosing Burger King,” he said during the earnings call.

Whopper’s wins

About six months ago, Burger King debuted a major makeover for its flagship hamburger — the Whopper — to reignite interest in the seven-decade-old menu item.

The chain replaced its soft bun with a more sturdier version, changed the recipe for its mayonnaise and now serves it in a box instead of wrapped in paper.

“You don’t want to just tear up the playbook and start all over,” Curtis previously told CNN. “It’s like we’re putting our famous iconic burger in a tuxedo instead of a leisure suit.”

Even though the new Whopper cost Burger King franchisees an extra $4,000 a year, the chain advised local owners not to raise prices, promising the investment will drive up sales.

It’s working: Whopper sales are up 20% compared to its previous iteration, the company revealed.

Now, Burger King needs to keep the momentum.

The chain has rolled out a new “Whopper Guarantee,” which will remake a customer’s Whopper for free if they aren’t satisfied. Plus, it’s focusing on a “reimagined restaurant manager role,” which the company said will help guests order and ensure they like their food.

Byrne said that human help is “going to give them an edge” over competitors like McDonald’s, which encourages customers to use kiosks for orders.

The company also said to expect more changes to its food and will continue to remodel its restaurants, since only about half of its roughly 6,600 US locations sport a new look.

RBI’s Doyle told analysts that the chain isn’t “close to finish” and that it sees “opportunities to elevate the menu, strengthen operations, and keep raising standards across the system.”

The-CNN-Wire
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Millions of Americans with untreated high blood pressure should be taking medication

By CNN
Nearly 1 in 3 adults in the United States with untreated high blood pressure would benefit from treatment and are not getting it, according to a new study.That’s because nearly 10 million Americans now meet newly updated guidelines by the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology that redefine an adult’s risk for cardiovascular disease.“We estimated that approximately 200,900 all-cause deaths and 162,600 cardiovascular deaths could be prevented over the next 10 years,” said lead study author Dr. Mustafa Al-Jarshawi, a cardiologist at Keele University in England.Ideally, doctors want blood pressure to fall below 120 mmHg systolic and 80 mmHg diastolic. If blood pressure is around 130/80, doctors have typically advised people to make changes to their lifestyle, such as increasing exercise.If doctors use the American Heart Association’s new PREVENT tool, which considers blood sugar, kidney function and a person’s decade-long risk for heart disease as well as blood pressure, some 81 million Americans would be eligible for blood pressure medications.“What this is saying is that people who have traditionally not been at very high risk are now eligible to be treated with medications more aggressively,” said cardiologist Dr. Andrew Freeman, director of cardiovascular prevention and wellness at National Jewish Health in Denver.“Generally, I think when people have additional risk, blood pressure is really the silent killer,” said Freeman, who was not involved with the study.Expanding treatment could save livesThe study, published July 29 in the Journal of the American Heart Association, analyzed National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data from 2009 to 2018. Newer data is available, but the most up-to-date version of the survey hasn’t been around long enough for researchers to know participants’ cause and time of death.The study examines how death rates might be lower if the 2025 hypertension guidelines were implemented during those years, Al-Jarshawi said.Among 81 million adults with high blood pressure and no cardiovascular disease, nearly 23 million may be newly eligible under the new guidelines. Of those 23 million, 9.7 million were untreated.Becoming eligible to receive blood pressure medication was associated with a 23% lower risk of dying compared with no treatment. When it comes to the chances of dying from a heart-related issue, risk dropped by 50%. The study also found that adults with diabetes would benefit most from treatment. This is because diabetes and high blood pressure often occur together, significantly increasing cardiovascular risk, Al-Jarshawi said.Treatment is more than a medicationAny eligible person shouldn’t hesitate to start taking medication in addition to making lifestyle changes to reduce long-term risks, Al-Jarshawi said.Controlling high blood pressure is a long-term commitment to health, CNN contributor Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and adjunct associate professor at George Washington University, told CNN in a previous article. She recommended looking into a key inventory of five daily habits: level of physical activity, diet, substance use including alcohol and marijuana, stress levels, and a healthy weight.“You don’t have to do everything perfectly to make a difference in your health,” Wen said. She suggests starting with small lifestyle changes. Many people can’t easily reduce stress in their lives, but maybe they can more easily start eating more fruits and vegetables.”The findings of the new study highlight the importance of controlling high blood pressure, Freeman said.“The western world is ailing from a variety of cardiometabolic, kidney diseases,” Freeman said. “High blood pressure amplifies a lot of risk, and we have to do whatever we can to get that risk down and being aggressive about blood pressure is very low-hanging fruit.”However, medication only works when it’s inside the person, and not sitting in the bottle unused, Freeman said. About half of adults in the US with high blood pressure don’t regularly take their prescribed medication, according to a July 2025 study published in the journal JAMA Cardiology.Freeman recommends trying to form a habit, such as keeping your pillbox next to an alarm or toothbrush. That way, when set an alarm for the morning or brush your teeth, you remember to also take the pills.“There’s a way to cue yourself and remind,” Freeman said. “For those people that forget, consider having a small supply in your purse or your wallet or your car, just so you can always remember to take it.”The study’s findings also highlight the need for physicians to be alert to early signs of disease and consider blood pressure treatment, even in younger people, according to Freeman.“We’re seeing a lot more young people now who have chronic disease and diabetes and other things that may be relatively mild, but still at risk, and we need to be even more aggressive,” Freeman said.The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
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