‘WoMen’s Football’ gender-equity deepfake ad wins Entertainment Lions for Sport Grand Prix

Plenty of brands have taken on the cause of gender equity in sports in the past year. But few have done it more creatively than French telecom provider Orange, whose “WoMen’s Football” campaign from Publicis agency Marcel won the Entertainment Lions for Sport Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity on Tuesday. The effort used crafty editing to make it look like actual women’s soccer highlights came from men. The head fake, which is revealed at the end of the ad, effectively proves that the women’s game is just as exciting as the men’s game. The campaign was a favorite heading into Cannes after winning Best of Show at The One Show 2024 in addition to picking up the most Grand Clios at the Clio Awards. Ad Age ranked the spot as the second-best ad of 2023. The ad “took aim at a very real prejudice—that women’s sporting events are not as exciting or athletic as the men’s events—and turned it on its head. The surprise factor was so real, and the proof was indisputable,” said VML Global Chief Creative Officer Debbi Vandeven in Ad Age’s roundup of Cannes predictions from top creatives published last week, while Vida M. Cornelious, senior VP of creative and strategy, T Brand/New York Times Advertising, called it an “excellent execution of deepfake technology.” Cannes Lions coverage See all of the Grand Prix winners here Top 5 Grand Prix campaigns Orange and Marcel will now wait to see if they take home the festival’s biggest prize—“WoMen’s Football” is among 20 campaigns that made the Titanium shortlist. Other winners in the Entertainment Lions for Sport category include Anheuser-Busch InBev and FCB New York’s “Lap of Legends,” which won a Gold Lion. In partnership with Formula 1’s Williams Racing, it used AI and augmented reality to depict racing legends competing against present-day drivers in a race that was broadcast by AMC, BBC America and The Roku Channel. Women’s soccer was also at the center of another winner—Nike and Wieden+Kennedy Portland took home Silver for “What the Football.”

‘WoMen’s Football’ gender-equity deepfake ad wins Entertainment Lions for Sport Grand Prix

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