Entertainment Lions for Gaming: Cannes 2024 Decoded

The Entertainment Lions For Gaming Grand Prix has been awarded to McCann London for its Xbox campaign 'The Everyday Tactician'.

The work transformed FM24 gamers' belief in their managerial skills into reality by recruiting a real-life tactician for Bromley FC, documented in a three-part series. The campaign bridged virtual and real football, boosted engagement and Game Pass users for Football Manager 24, and showcases the practical application of gaming skills in professional sports.

Edelman UK also won a Silver Lion for its 'Code My Crown'' campaign for Unilever Dove. The Unilever brand and the Open Source Afro Hair Library's work launched the world's first free guide for coding textured hair and protective styles in video games, created by Black artists and Edelman UK. This initiative addressed the poor representation of Black hairstyles in gaming by offering step-by-step instructions and cultural insights to help developers create more diverse and accurate depictions, thereby promoting inclusivity and representation in the virtual world.

The campaign has generated over 1.8 billion positive or neutral impressions. Edelman's research found that 95 per cent of Black gamers believe the initiative will positively impact the gaming community, and 81 per cent feel more connected to Dove as a result.

“We recognise we're not going to fix the whole problem, but I think if we think about specifically beauty and representation and what we can have a role in upfront… part of it is just making sure that we can identify where we as a brand can have a role,” Lauren Baker, senior brand manager of engagement and social impact for Dove told Creative Salon earlier this month.

Also winning in the UK are Doritos and Pepsico having bagged a Silver and Bronze for its 'Doritos Silent: The Word's First AI Augmented Snack' work.

Two Gold Lions were also awarded in the category to Paradis DDB for 'Gamer Loan' and VML Mexico City for 'This Is Not A Game'.

In total 10 Gaming Lions were awarded this year: one Grand Prix, two Gold, five Silver and seven Bronze.

Follow Creative Salon's Cannes Lions 2024 coverage through our dedicated content section.