treat Virgin as a serious competitor but when Virgin started outselling Coke in the United Kingdom and entered the American market, Coke realised it needed to do something. At the suggestion of a British female Coca-Cola executive, Coke assembled SWAT teams to fly to the UK on a hired DC-10 from Atlanta International Airport with suitcases of money for an influencing campaign. Its intent was to make deals with retailers that sold Coke and Virgin Cola to get Virgin Cola removed from the shelves and to threaten them with the removal of Coca-Cola fridges if they refused. Branson admitted Virgin did not know this was going on and it eventually led to a drop in sales and Virgin Cola ceasing to be sold outside of Virgin companies. Later the Coke executive would work for Lloyds TSB and would become the manager of Virgin Group's bank accounts to which Branson, when he found out from her at a dinner, said "I wasn't sure whether to strangle her or not" but forgave her for it. In 2007, Silver Spring acquired the UK licence from Princes Group. However, the company stopped producing Virgin Cola by early 2009, though would hold on to the license until it fell into administration in 2012. No company acquired Virgin Cola's UK licence in its place. It is unclear as to when the drink officially ceased production, as it appeared to still be briefly available in certain international markets following the production ceasing in the UK. Legacy The story of the drink and its subsequent rise and decline has been the subject of numerous articles and interviews, especially in relation to marketing, business and the wider story of Branson and the Virgin Group. See also List of defunct consumer brands References External links Virgin Drinks Cola brands Cola Products introduced in 1994 Drink companies of Canada Food and drink companies established in 1994 Canadian companies established in 1994 2007 establishments in England 2012 disestablishments in England Defunct companies based in Kent