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Three Lions or Gold Lions? VCCP pushes UK creativity at Cannes

Can the UK put in a good team performance at Cannes this year? The country has slipped to third position behind France (the US is top) in the WARC rankings, so the UK Advertising Exports Group (UKAEG) is working to boost the UK’s reputation, with help from VCCP.

This poster highlighting the UK’s 2023 tally of 106 Lions will be showing in Cannes this week, supported by a social media campaign. The footballing reference to England’s Three Lions football team will work as long as the players keep winning at the Euros – although the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish parts of the UK might not be impressed.

Aisling Conlon, international trade director for UK Advertising, Advertising Association, said: “The UK has a rich history and a strong global reputation for creativity, consistently reflected in our podium presence at the Cannes Lions Awards each year. In a week celebrating global creativity, we’ve harnessed the competitive spirit of the awards stage and infused it with UK humour. Known for our bold ideas and world-class creative storytelling, we are echoing the hopeful sentiment of England fans chanting ‘It’s coming home’ with our campaign to celebrate the UK’s long standing record of creativity excellence in a memorable and standout manner.”

Julian Douglas, Co-CEO at VCCP and chairman of UKAEG, said: “The latest export figures show that the UK are champions of Europe when it comes to advertising. We’ve also got a trophy cabinet that’s packed full of Lions, recognising the creative achievements of our current golden generation. Let’s see if we can bring a few more home this summer.”

The latest export figures show that UK advertising exports increased by 15% in 2023. The UK exports £3.4bn in advertising services the year, making it the second biggest exporter of advertising services in the world after the US, and way ahead of third place Germany (£1.2bn) and fourth place France (£1bn).

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