Le Club MSQ in Cannes 2026

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MSQ's Big Cannes Lions 2026 Review

As the industry starts to reflect on Cannes properly – beyond the first-day-back LinkedIn posts and tagging friends in pictures of beach parties and branded yachts – we thought we’d bring together a true group view of LIONS learnings.

Because in reality, Cannes Lions is many different festivals in one – whether you’re in the Palais listening to talks, immersing yourself in the work that’s winning awards, exploring the beach activations or heading to panels on the fringe, you can do Cannes your own way and experience a very different week to someone else’s.

MSQ Momentum Moves (79)

MSQ Calls on the Industry to Re-shape AI in Empower Cafe Partnership at Cannes

MSQ is encouraging industry leaders to tackle AI bias through a new campaign debuting at Cannes Lions.

As AI use grows rapidly, the reality is already emerging: AI tools are reflecting our human biases rather than challenging and subverting them, and left unchecked, risk compounding them further.

‘Prompt Us In’ aims to change that. Created by Amanda Bui and Alice Giorgi from Forge, MSQ’s impact-driven growth consultancy, the campaign calls on those at Cannes Lions to take action: ‘Change the prompt. Change the data. Change the answer.’ By giving AI tools more specific direction, we can start to see better representation in the results; creating marketing that reflects the unbiased society we're working to build.

PETER REID MSQ Creative Salon

Peter Reid on why MSQ is Betting on AI, Agility, and the Challenger Opportunity

Predictably AI once again dominated the conversations at Cannes Lions. But for Peter Reid, global chief executive of MSQ, the more interesting question is not whether agencies are using the technology, but whether they are using it to build better, more creative, and more commercially resilient businesses.

Speaking during the Festival of Creativity, Reid set out why he believes MSQ’s mid-sized scale gives it an advantage at a time when marketers are demanding more agility, more integration, and more business impact from their agency partners.

What Cannes Lions Looks Like Through Young Eyes

What Cannes Lions Looks Like Through Young Eyes

Every year, Cannes Lions is documented from the top down; the big stages, the Grand Prix, the familiar faces. Each year, we try to do something different. In 2026, we sent two of Forge's rising stars, Alice Giorgi and Amanda Bui, to the Croisette for the first time, and asked them to tell us what they actually found.

What came back wasn't the usual highlights reel. It was an honest, curious account of an industry in transition; where hierarchies flattened on the beach, trust emerged as the theme no one had quite planned for, and AI turned out to be the starting point of every conversation rather than the destination.

The Gate Plan International Cannes

The Campaign Showcasing the Ts and Cs of Being a Girl

Some of the most important work doesn't shout; it makes you stop and read the small print. The Gate and Plan International's Terms and Conditions of Being a Girl campaign, produced by M3 Labs, did exactly that, confronting the invisible contract placed on girls from the moment they're born with a visual so quiet and devastating it was almost impossible to scroll past. Le Club MSQ and Empower Cafe were proud to give it a platform at Cannes, inviting guests to engage with the campaign and support the cause.

In this piece for Creative Salon, Plan International UK CMO Nick Radmore and The Gate CEO Helen James go behind the work — the brief that demanded bravery, the deliberate use of AI, and why discomfort was never the goal, but was always going to be part of the message.

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Smarts' Cannes Lions Diary

What does it take to go deeper; in a dive, in a brief, in a piece of work? That was the question Smarts brought to the Palais stage this year, in one of Le Club MSQ's most memorable sessions. Brand Futures Director Nat Moores was joined by world freediving champion Kateryna Sadurska, whose record-breaking 88-metre dives became an unexpected — and unforgettable — lens through which to examine what creative depth really means, and why so many brands are in danger of losing it.

From the main stage to the Empower Café, Smarts made Cannes count. Read their full diary of the week; the ideas, the conversations, and what they're bringing back to clients.

The AI Advantage isn't AI. It's Judgement

The AI Advantage isn't AI. It's Judgement

A thousand hot takes come out of Cannes every year. Most don't survive the flight home. MSQ DX's Jessica Quiroga went looking for the ones that will; the signals that kept surfacing across different stages and different rooms until they stopped sounding like opinions and started sounding like something more durable.

What she found was a Cannes defined by one central tension: AI has stopped being a tools decision and become an org chart decision. Five ideas cut through the noise. On creativity, measurement, production, structure and trust. Read on for the takeaways that are already reshaping how the smartest marketing organisations are built.

LIONS B2B Summit

LIONS B2B Summit: B2B's evolved (and evolving) marketing mandate

Cannes 2026 made one thing clear: B2B brands building durable advantage aren't optimizing old models — they're operating a different one entirely. Buyability over attribution. Business impact over marketing metrics. Creative conviction over caution.

Our Key Takeaways recap breaks down the standout talks from the LIONS B2B Summit, the winning work, and what it means for your 2026–2027 planning.

The Drum Tom Stein

The Drum's Chat with the Hat: Tom Stein

B2B marketing has never had more to say for itself — and few people say it better than Tom Stein. At Cannes this year, Stein. partnered with LinkedIn, Microsoft, LIONS and the International Advertising Association to host the official LIONS B2B Summit at Le Club MSQ, bringing together the who's who of B2B marketing for a day of sessions and an evening that continued the conversation well into the night.

Reuben Webb caught up with Tom on the ground to talk about where B2B creativity actually stands right now — the progress, the gap between ambition and execution, and what it's going to take to close it.

Cannes Empower Cafe

Where the real Cannes happened: A view from Mallory and Kaitlyn

Following an epic week of insights and inspiration, Cannes first-timers and MSQ's Young Lions for 2025, Mallory Cross and Kaitlyn Powers from SPCSHP gave Campaign the run-down of all the places you want to be at the industry's most prestigious festival.

B2B’s New Brand Manifesto: Key Takeaways from Cannes 2025

Cannes Lions 2025 marked a turning point for B2B marketing, with the spotlight on bold, human-centred strategies that challenge long-held assumptions. From emotionally driven decision-making to integrated brand-to-demand models, the trends point to a new era of growth and creativity in B2B, which you can read all about in Stein's post-Cannes report.

Cannes Beyond the Lions

Beyond the Lions: Brand takeaways from Cannes 2025

After judging nearly 400 projects from the Design Jury, one thing’s clear: the best work wasn’t loud – it was smart, purposeful, and deeply human. Here's what stood out to Elmwood's Design Director, Paul O'Brien via Creative Brief.

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What happens when creativity gets a bionic arm?

Raphaël Bouquillon, SVP at SPCSHP, reflects on a week in Cannes. If last year was about AI's potential, this year was about learning how to live with it.

The conversations weren't asking if AI belongs in creativity anymore. They were asking how we use it responsibly, creatively, and in service of people.

Cannes Design

Does Cannes Lions really get design?

This year Elmwood's Design Director, Paul O'Brien, had the pleasure of serving on the Design Lions jury, an experience that was just as inspiring as it was revealing, when it came to how the world of design is changing. Read in Creative Review.

In conversation with Aaron Lang

In conversation with Aaron Lang

North America President of MSQ, Aaron Lang, talks to Dylan Conroy from The Ad Podcast about all things Cannes, creativity, and boosting momentum - sharing what sets MSQ apart thanks to our specialised expertise with senior-level thinking, all under one collaborative network.

Watch the interview

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The Ritualicious Lunch: Part Two

A year on since the launch of our Ritualized research, we brought the buzzword of the moment, 'Rituals' back to Cannes, for an afternoon lunch discussing its importance when it comes to understanding customer needs, complete with the premiere of our short documentary explaining our thorough research, in partnership with The Marketing Society.

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BRONZE: Craft in B2B

'Everybody's Business', Stein X LinkedIn

Created in partnership with two-time Oscar-winning director Ben Proudfoot and LinkedIn, 'Everybody's Business' is a short documentary about the evolution of B2B marketing - and now a proud winner of a Cannes Lions!

The film follows B2B luminaries like Andisa Ntsubane, Jennifer Johnson and Tom Stein, Chairman of Stein, an MSQ B2B agency. Congratulations to the team!

View the campaign

Bundles of Joy Burger King

4 X SILVER: Outdoor Lions

'Bundles of Joy', Walk-In Media X Burger King

Hot off the press from the Croisette, the Lion's out the bag for Walk-In Media!

We're delighted for the team to have brought home bundles of Lions for Burger King's Bundles of Joy campaign, winning 4 Silvers in the Outdoor category.

A huge congratulations to everyone involved, both at BBH London and Walk-In for bringing such a sensational campaign to life. Here's to many more to come!

View the campaign

Stein B2B Lion Shortlist Mack Trucks

SHORTLISTED: Cross-Channel Storytelling, Creative B2B Lion

'By America's Side', Stein X Mack Trucks

A campaign that met or exceeded every campaign objective. Compared to previous brand campaigns, Stein achieved 34% higher engagement at a 59% lower paid media budget, and by Q4 2024, demand for Mack led to an order increase of 26% for its heavy-duty trucks — and a 264,000+ waitlist, directly attributable to the campaign’s impact. The campaign has since been organically adopted by Mack’s other markets, including Canada, Colombia, Australia and Mexico.

Internally, the campaign assumed a place of pride as the first-ever Mack campaign permanently placed in the Mack Trucks Historical Museum.

MSQuarterly_Jun25_YoungLions

Introducing our MSQ Young Lions competition winners for 2025: Mallory Cross and Kaitlyn Powers from SPCSHP.

This year we have partnered with WACL and the Empower Café to set a creative challenge rooted in our shared values: championing gender equality and joined-up thinking. The brief? Create a short film that challenges the status quo and drives change for good.

Meet the MSQ Young Lions

MSQ Meet the Sponsors LBB

We're a proud sponsor of LBB & Friends Beach this year. They spoke to Tamsin James, CMO of MSQ about who we have on the ground in Cannes, what we’re planning throughout the week, and the conversations we’re most eager to be part of.

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Cannes Lions has announced today the line-up of global experts who will shortlist world-class creative work this June.

The list includes experts from across 79 markets, representing the global industry's leading talent from a diverse range of disciplines, including Elmwood's Paul O'Brien, who is on the Design Lions jury.

During Cannes week, Paul will also be judging the Cannes Young Lions Design Competition, selecting the most innovative and impactful work from across over 90 countries.

Stein B2B LIONS Summit

The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has announced the launch of an inaugural LIONS B2B Summit. Featuring LinkedIn as the headline partner, and our B2B agency, Stein as the supporting partner, the Summit will explore discussions on how creativity strengthens brand reputation, the role of connections and influence in B2B, and why creativity in B2B is a competitive advantage.

Did you know that 70% of consumers are open to adopting new rituals? And 39% feel more positively towards brands that become part of their rituals?

Whereas traditional marketing approaches consumer behaviour from the standpoint of the brand, rituals flip this script on its head. The consumer is in charge of creating their own personal rituals and deciding whether and how to incorporate brands – not the other way around.

Our white paper serves as a guide for brands looking to tap into the power of rituals. It offers insights, strategies, and practical examples to help brands authentically engage with their consumers in ways that matter.

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