Cannes Lions Launches Creative Brand Lion for 2026

New Creative Brand Lion will reward organisational systems over individual campaigns—plus AI craft categories and retail media expansion

Next year’s Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity is doing something different. Instead of just celebrating the work, it’s targeting the brands that create the conditions for great work to happen.

The Creative Brand Lion, launching in 2026, will spotlight companies that have built the internal systems, cultures and capabilities to consistently produce world-class marketing. It’s a recognition that in 2025, with AI tools everywhere and marketing technology getting more complex, how you’re set up matters as much as what you make.