As Cannes Lions approaches, we're starting to wonder what kinds of conversations we'll be having at the festival. What trends will define Cannes Lions 2026? And what kind of work will win in today's attention economy?
I spoke to a range of experts to find out their predictions for the festival, which takes place 22-26 June.
With the festival coinciding with the World Cup this year, many people thought the focus will be on sport.
"Sport will continue to establish itself as one of the most influential arenas for creativity at Cannes Lions," says Luke Bliss, managing partner, PR & creative at Fuse "The shift underway is clear. We're moving away from traditional sponsorship-led thinking and towards ideas that are rooted in fan culture from the start. The defining work will be designed around how sport is experienced today. Viewed across social platforms, experienced with live moments and felt by connected communities. With fan behaviour underpinning the whole idea, rather than serving as an afterthought.
"In an increasingly competitive attention economy, the ideas that resonate most will feel native to fandom itself. Success will come from moving beyond visibility to participation, creating experiences that fans actively engage with, share and help shape.
"The most awarded work will demonstrate a genuine creative leap in how brands contribute to sport, rather than simply attaching themselves to it. Whether through new formats, unexpected collaborations or innovative ways of extending and amplifying moments, the strongest ideas will deepen fan engagement and transform fleeting attention into lasting cultural relevance."
James Campbell, co-founder at 50 Sport, agrees that the timing of this year's festival is key. "With the launch of LIONS Sport and the 2026 FIFA World Cup taking place during Cannes week, sport will be front and centre," he says. "More broadly, sport's growing prominence at Cannes is a result of sport, entertainment and culture converging, as brands recognise that they'll be more relevant if they're part of the conversations and communities people already care about. And that's ultimately what will define the work that stands out.
"We've moved beyond an era where reach was the primary measure of success. In a world saturated with content, the winning brands will be the ones creating genuine emotional resonance and human connection. As AI changes the value of content, humanity becomes the differentiator and few places deliver that more honestly and emotionally than sport."
And AI is changing more than just content, it's changing the way we see creativity. "This year at Cannes, I expect to see a shift away from celebrating what technology can do and back towards celebrating how creativity makes people feel," says Trin Basra, VP Executive Creative Director, Sparks EMEA.
"As AI makes competence increasingly commonplace, emotion becomes the last true differentiator. The work that stands out won't simply be efficient, personalised or automated but instead it will create experiences that feel unmistakably human.
"We're already seeing a renaissance in experiential creativity, not out of nostalgia, but necessity. In a world of AI-generated feeds and infinite content, physical, unrepeatable moments carry a scarcity that no algorithm can replicate. Oner Active's 'Oner Your Recovery' activation during the London Marathon (above) is a great example of this. By showing up for female athletes rather than marketing at them, it created genuine participation and connection.
"In today's attention economy, impressions are cheap and feelings compound. The work that wins at Cannes in 2026 won't just demonstrate reach or engagement, but it will create emotional impact and lasting cultural resonance."
Dani Cushion, CMO at Teads, agrees that the human touch will stand out at the festival. "Conversations at Cannes Lions are a good indicator of the challenges and priorities shaping our industry. This year, the shift from volume to value will be a key topic across the Croisette. As AI makes it easier than ever to create and distribute content at scale, our job as marketers is to balance automation with what consumers actually care about, trust, and value. Human creativity still plays a critically important role in standing out from AI-generated noise.
"At the same time, marketing is moving beyond channel-by-channel thinking toward connected systems that bring together media, creative, data and measurement. I expect lots of conversations around “seamlessness” – not only in how connected systems can drive effectiveness in a fragmented media landscape, but more importantly, how they ensure we’re building relationships with consumers wherever they are in their journey and at every touchpoint across screens."
Annabelle Canwell, Vice President, Partnerships, Disney Advertising EMEA, also believes it's all about trust this year. "At Cannes Lions, discussions across the media landscape will continue to centre on audience fragmentation and the competition for attention. As audiences spread across platforms, brands and advertisers are placing greater value on trusted, premium environments where attention is earned rather than interrupted.
"In turn, the focus is shifting toward culturally resonant storytelling and deeper forms of engagement. The work that will stand out at the Festival will be creative-led with brands integrated more naturally into entertainment experiences rather than appearing adjacent to them.
"The challenge for the industry here is balancing commercial objectives with storytelling integrity – audiences are quick to recognise when integrations feel forced. Ultimately, the most effective partnerships are those built early in the creative process, enabling storytelling that feels authentic both to the audience and platform it's appearing on."
Who will win at Cannes in 2026? "The work that will stand out at Cannes and win in today's attention economy will earn attention through relevance, creativity and meaningful engagement," says Dani. "As creative and media become more interconnected, the strongest campaigns will connect emotional impact with measurable outcomes and prove attention's value as the driver of growth."
The Brand Impact Awards 2026 are now open for entries! If you have a standout branding project from the last year that you think deserves recognition, you need to enter the BIAs. You have until July 9 to enter and you can do so on the Brand Impact Awards website.
