13 May 2025 – The highest accolades of the The WARC Awards for Effectiveness 2025, in association with LIONS, are announced. The awards honour the best marketing campaigns from across the globe that deliver strategic brilliance and effective impact to drive commercial success.
Five Global Grands Prix have been awarded following a rigorous judging process and much deliberation by the Grand Prix awarding jury, made up of all five regional jury chairs and other jury members, representing Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East & Africa, Latin America and North America.
Selected from 20 regional gold-winning entries, the Grands Prix showcase the best examples of how marketers are driving growth across different sectors and audiences both for local and global brands.
The US leads with two Grands Prix. India, The Netherlands, and Spain each win one.
Matt Che, Chief Marketing Officer, Budweiser, APAC – APAC jury chair and chair of the grand prix jury said: “This year’s winners aren’t just clever – they’re cultural brewers crafting impact. Sharp insights, fermented with hyper-local creative solutions, brewed into masterpieces rooted in tradition yet tackling today’s problems.”
John Bizzell, Awards Lead, WARC, added: “Selected from the hundreds of entries from around the world, the five Grand Prix campaigns set the bar high for effective marketing. This outstanding work, alongside all the winners of this year’s WARC Awards for Effectiveness, will be an inspiration for future successes. We thank all our dedicated juries and congratulate all of the winners.”
The five Grand Prix winners for the WARC Awards 2025 are:
- Channel Pioneer Grand Prix: ‘Find Your Summer’ for Magnum by Lola MullenLowe, Madrid
Ice cream brand Magnum challenged the seasonality of ice cream sales in the UK by encouraging consumers to indulge in ice cream during winter with its Find Your Summer campaign. Magnum launched a black-and-white film portraying moments of warmth and pleasure with Magnum and provided real-time information about sunlight and nearby stores.
Magnum achieved a remarkable 38.9% sales uplift during winter, marking its best season ever, while also increasing brand power and purpose perception significantly.
The jury said: “We loved that the brand tackled an age-old problem by building on a compelling insight. The investment in out-of-home advertising combined with the fact that people really did find their summer, made this a clear Grand Prix winner.”
- Customer Experience Grand Prix: ‘Horror Codes’ for Uber Eats by Retink, New York
Delivery brand Uber Eats drove awareness and trial of its non-restaurant delivery verticals in the USA by gamifying the Halloween shopping experience with its Horror Codes campaign. The campaign featured iconic horror movie quotes turned into promo codes, which consumers had to complete correctly to unlock discounts on Halloween candy.
Horror Codes resulted in over 2 million promo code applications, with a 20% increase in convenience orders, an 18% increase in grocery orders, and a 65% larger average basket size for users engaged in the campaign.
The jury said: “Breaking through in the Halloween period by getting core IP from four different movie studios took this campaign beyond our expectations. It really worked on a different level and clearly deserved a Grand Prix.”
- Partnerships & Sponsorships Grand Prix: ‘Michael CeraVe’ for CeraVe by Ogilvy, New York
Skincare brand CeraVe enhanced cultural relevance and consumer engagement around its moisturizing cream through a humorous and interconnected media strategy in the USA. The Super Bowl campaign leveraged organic mentions of a connection between actor Michael Cera and CeraVe, leading to a playful conspiracy theory that engaged both new consumers and loyalists.
The campaign achieved 30 billion earned impressions, 1.44 billion paid media impressions and a 9% brand lift, while also generating the highest ever week in sales for CeraVe’s moisturizers post-Super Bowl.
The jury said: “We thought a skincare brand taking this route into the Super Bowl was remarkable. The 360 engagement with the event, digitally and in real-time, led to immediate sales growth making it a stand out for a Grand Prix in this category.”
- Strategic Thinking Grand Prix: ‘A Piece of Me’ for KPN by Dentsu Creative, Amsterdam
Dutch telecommunications firm KPN launched its #BetterInternet campaign to raise awareness of intimate photographs being shared without consent. Musician MEAU wrote a song based on conversations with victims and the music video was seeded across various channels including social media, television, and public relations.
The film went viral on TikTok, the story was featured across national tabloids, academic journals and disability support websites, and both brand relevance and product sales increased.
The jury said: “In a mature, price-competitive market, we loved that the strategy for this campaign focused on differentiating the brand via its values and consumer understanding. It encouraged critical conversations around bullying and it helped change the law, earning it a Grand Prix.”
- Use of Data Grand Prix: ‘Turf Finder’ for Gatorade by Leo, Mumbai
Sports drink Gatorade revitalised its brand relevance in India by transforming urban spaces into play areas, addressing the lack of opportunities for sports participation. Using 20 years of Google Maps traffic data, Gatorade set up modular turfs in low-traffic areas, creating temporary sports arenas and engaging over 50,000 participants through targeted ads and influencer collaborations.
The campaign resulted in a remarkable 59% growth overall, with a 124% increase in Mumbai, while also doubling top-of-mind awareness and generating significant earned media coverage.
The jury said: “We loved the simplicity at the heart of this idea: encourage people to drink more Gatorade by getting them to play more. The results were incredible and demonstrated how an innovative approach to data can really move a brand forward – and win you a Grand Prix.”
The Grands Prix winners were first revealed today via The Effectiveness Show.
The WARC Awards 2025 saw a total of 71 winners across 11 categories for the five regional award shows. Globally, 32 bronze, 19 silver, and 20 gold awards were awarded with five golds elevated to Global Grand Prix status.
Metals by region 2025:
The WARC Awards North America: 37 shortlisted | 10 bronze | 6 silver | 4 gold | 2 grand prix
The WARC Awards Asia Pacific: 38 shortlisted | 7 bronze | 3 silver | 3 gold | 1 grand prix
The WARC Awards Europe: 27 shortlisted | 7 bronze | 3 silver | 3 gold | 2 grand prix
The WARC Awards Latin America: 10 shortlisted | 2 bronze | 0 silver | 4 gold
The WARC Awards Middle East & Africa: 18 shortlisted | 5 bronze | 3 silver | 4 bronze
