On 16 June, the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2025 announced the first Grand Prix winners in six categories: Audio & Radio, Print & Publishing, Outdoor, Health & Wellness, Pharma, and Lions Health and United Nations Grand Prix for Good.
The winning campaigns include work from Brazil, Germany, Czech Republic, France, Singapore, China, and New Zealand.
Audio & Radio
Budweiser’s ‘One Second Ads’ by Africa Creative DDB, São Paulo, received the Grand Prix in the Audio & Radio Lions category this year.
The campaign featured a series of ads containing the first second of popular songs and asked fans to identify the tunes on social media. When a fan guessed the song correctly, they’d receive a direct message from Budweiser with a discount code.
The brand recorded over 125,000 guesses, with fans redeeming 4,878 coupons. The one-second format was long enough for fans to recognise the songs but also short enough that the brand did not have to pay for music rights.
This campaign tells us that the success of an ad does not hinge on its length but rather on its ability to engage an audience in a creative way. Another example of this comes from Waitrose’s recent Christmas whodunnit campaign, which featured two lengthy parts but kept viewers engaged through gamification. Marketers should, therefore, worry less about length and more about engagement.
Print & Publishing
‘Price Packs’ for PENNY, by Serviceplan Munich, took home the Print & Publishing Grand Prix yesterday. MediaCat UK predicted that PENNY’s Price Packs would perform well at Cannes this year because of how it converts its owned products into an effective media channel.
The German discounter PENNY repackaged five household products to highlight their stable prices amidst high inflation and price fluctuations in Europe. The Price Packs have minimalist branding that magnifies their price and makes them stand out when sitting next to competitors’ products in supermarkets.
Within the first four weeks of the campaign, PENNY marked its best-selling month and sold over 1.4 million products. The brand also recorded a 2,220% increase in association with price stability and recorded $120 million in earned media.
Outdoor Lions
The Outdoor Lions category attracted 2,001 entries this year and had not one but two Grand Prix winners.
KitKat’s ‘Phone Break’ campaign (‘Crowd’, ‘Public Transport’, ‘Street’) by VML, Prague, took home the first Grand Prix — this also marked the first Grand Prix for the Czech Republic. The campaign depicted people in everyday situations but swapped their smartphones with KitKat bars. It offered a sharp commentary on society’s phone obsession.
Outdoor Lions Jury President, Keka Morelle, Chief Creative Officer LATAM, Ogilvy, LATAM, commented on the campaign in a press release: ‘Masterclass in Outdoor. Without words or logos, it communicates a strong message through a beautifully crafted image. It captures the moment we’re living in, reinforces the brand’s concept, and immediately sparks reflection, holding up a mirror to our screen addiction.’
And while KitKat’s campaign and PENNY’s Price Packs won in different categories, they were both a response to current challenges.
The second Grand Prix in this category went to ‘Olympic Games Opening Ceremony Paris 2024’ for Paris 2024 by Paname 24, Paris / AUDITOIRE, Paris / Double 2, Paris / OBO, Paris / Havas Paris / Havas Events Paris.
This was an unexpected win, considering that most outdoor campaigns feature billboards and posters. Meanwhile, the Olympic ceremony converted Paris — specifically, the Seine — into a large stage.
Morelle called it ‘a clear reminder of the limitless power of Outdoor.’
‘This work redefines public space as a platform not just for visibility, but for meaning, where brand values meet cultural relevance. This is how Outdoor should be seen: expansive, emotional, and essential to authentic brand expression in today’s world,’ Morelle said.
Other winners
Viatris’ ‘Make Love Last – Bedroom’ by Ogilvy, Shanghai, won the Pharma Lions Grand Prix and Unilever’s ‘Vaseline Verified’ by Ogilvy, Singapore, won the Health and Wellness Grand Prix.
The Lions Health and United Nations Grand Prix for Good went to the New Zealand Herpes Foundation’s ‘The Best Place In The World To Have Herpes’ by Finch in Sydney and Motion Sickness in Auckland, New Zealand.
Featured image: ‘Phone Break’ for KitKat by VML Prague