Contagious has unveiled its 2026 Pioneers list which shines a light on the agencies setting creative standards. As Contagious is part of the Cannes Lions stable (along with WARC and the Effies), it’s worth noting who is meeting its rigorous criteria ahead of the festival next month – and how they got there.
Four UK agencies made it onto the 11-strong list, each of them with at least one impressive recent campaign. The awards timing works out for VCCP’s “Made to be enjoyed, not endured” for Cadbury’s Bournville; Uncommon’s “The periodic fable” for The Ordinary; and Leo UK for McDonald’s “The secret menu” (below).
Marcel Paris will have high hopes at Cannes for Visa’s “The feathered lamb” (below), and PS21 Madrid for KFC’s Don Pollo Menu. The other agencies on the 11-strong list come from around the world: Mother London, Le Pub Milan, David New York, DDB NZ (now McCann NZ), Ogilvy Singapore, and Gut Sao Paulo.
Contagious calculates the list by looking at agencies’ best work and the consistency of its overall output.
Notable that there are three independent agencies – PS21 Madrid, Mother, and VCCP – while the rest are owned by networks. From the Omnicom stable we have McCann NZ; from Publicis there are Le Pub Milan, Leo UK and Marcel Paris; WPP has David New York and Ogilvy Singapore. Havas (Uncommon) and Globant (Gut have one apiece).
