The 2026 Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity ended with strong results for Africa, as Kenya and South Africa recorded standout wins. The festival’s final winners were announced on June 25, 2026, confirming a big showing for the continent in this year’s competition.
Kenya made history by taking home its first-ever Grand Prix at Cannes Lions 2026, a major milestone for the country’s creative industry. The festival’s official winners page highlighted Kenya among the top awardees in the final batch of results.
South Africa also had a notable outing, with The Philipstown WireCar Foundation and Accenture Song, South Africa, linked to the Grand Prix-winning work “The Philipstown WireCar Grand Prix.” That win added to the country’s visibility at the global awards show.
In another major announcement, Heineken was crowned Creative Brand of the Year at Cannes Lions 2026. A report on the award said the beer brand received the title at the international festival, further underlining the scale of its creative performance this year.
The final winners announcement came at the close of the festival, which also included major results in categories such as Glass: The Lion for Change, Dan Wieden Titanium Lions, Film Lions and Sustainable Development Goals Lions.
For Africa, the result was especially significant because Kenya’s first Grand Prix placed the continent in a stronger global spotlight. Combined with South Africa’s success and Heineken’s brand recognition, the 2026 edition delivered a strong finish for African creativity on the world stage.
The festival’s final outcome showed that African brands, agencies and creative teams are continuing to gain ground in global advertising and communications awards.
List of top winners of 2026 Cannes Lions Festival are as follows;
Heineken Creative Brand of the Year 2026 for outstanding creative performance across its global campaigns.
AB InBev Creative Marketer of the Year 2026 (third time) and winner of the inaugural Creative Brand Lion Grand Prix for Creativity at Scale.
Kenya Africa’s first-ever Cannes Lions Grand Prix, a historic milestone for the continent.
VML One of the festival’s most-awarded agency networks with multiple Grand Prix victories.
LePub Multiple Grand Prix for its creative work on Heineken campaigns.
Mother London Film Lions Grand Prix winner.
Leo Australia Dan Wieden Titanium Lion Grand Prix for Haven created for Suncorp.
Johannes Leonardo Entertainment Grand Prix awards for Original Forever for adidas.
Idomed Recognised with the Grand Prix for Good
Suncorp Brand behind the Titanium Grand Prix-winning campaign Haven.
adidas Multiple Grand Prix-winning brand through Original Forever.
Coinbase Film Craft Grand Prix for Your Way Out.
Uber Eats Grand Prix winner in the Media/PR/Social & Creator awards track.
KitKat Grand Prix-winning campaign in the Media/PR/Social & Creator track.
Columbia Sportswear Grand Prix-winning campaign in the Strategy/Innovation awards track.
Publicis Conseil Grand Prix-winning agency during the festival.
TBWA\Canada Grand Prix-winning agency.
McCann Greece Grand Prix-winning agency.
South Africa Multiple Gold and Silver Lions across several categories
Peru Creative Data Lions Grand Prix
The following Special Awards were also announced:
Network of the Year:
Ogilvy
VML
TBWA Worldwide
Independent Network of the Year:
Rethink
Mother
Wieden+Kennedy
Agency of the Year:
LePub, Milan, Italy
VML, New York, United States
Rethink, Toronto, Canada
Independent Agency of the Year:
Rethink, Toronto, Canada
Isle of Any, New York, United States
Mother, London, United Kingdom
Palme d’Or:
MJZ, United States
Biscuit Filmworks, United Kingdom
CANADA, Spain
Creative Brand of the Year:
Heineken
KitKat
IKEA
Agency of the Year by Track
Agency of the Year – Classic:
Rethink, Toronto, Canada
Agency of the Year – Craft:
TBWA\Media Arts Lab, Los Angeles, United States
Agency of the Year – Engagement:
LePub, Milan, Italy
Agency of the Year – Entertainment:
DAVID, New York, United States
Agency of the Year – Experience:
VML, Warsaw, Poland
Agency of the Year – Good:
Motion Sickness, Auckland, New Zealand
Agency of the Year – Health:
Fallon, Minneapolis, United States
Agency of the Year – Strategy:
Publicis Conseil, Paris, France
Independent Agency of the Year by Track
Independent Agency of the Year – Classic:
Rethink, Toronto, Canada
Independent Agency of the Year – Craft:
Isle of Any, New York, United States
Independent Agency of the Year – Engagement:
Special, Los Angeles, United States
Independent Agency of the Year – Entertainment:
Wieden+Kennedy, Mexico City, Mexico
Independent Agency of the Year – Experience:
WESAYHI, Sliema, Malta
Independent Agency of the Year – Good:
Motion Sickness, Auckland, New Zealand
Independent Agency of the Year – Health:
Klick Health, Toronto, Canada
Independent Agency of the Year – Strategy:
Rethink, Toronto, Canada
In-house Agency of the Year
Apple, Cupertino, United States
Google Creative Lab, Mountain View, United States
L’Oréal, New York, United States
