What occurred: LePub São Paulo is facing scrutiny over its Bronze Lion–winning “Followers Store” entry for New Steadiness and São Paulo FC, after journalist Demétrio Vecchioli raised considerations about unverifiable outcomes and deceptive claims.

The case movie said 45,000 jerseys have been offered in a day by way of geo-targeted push notifications. Nevertheless, Vecchioli discovered no public proof that the presale occurred.

Some media cited within the video had not coated the marketing campaign or didn’t function in Brazil, and influencer content material could have been edited or misrepresented.

LePub advised ADWEEK it has launched an inside investigation. On the time of writing, it didn’t present an replace on the outcomes.

The marketing campaign’s case web page has since been taken offline. In line with Vecchioli, the company acknowledged some inaccuracies however argued jurors have been judging the concept, not its outcomes.

LePub assertion: “Now we have zero tolerance for this kind of state of affairs and have launched a swift and thorough investigation as a way to take the required disciplinary measures. At LePub, we have now constructed our fame with our shoppers for actual, impactful work, and we’re dedicated to holding these values to the best commonplace.”

Cannes Lions assertion: “Now we have been made conscious of this dispute between the entrant firm and the shopper,” a Cannes Lions spokesperson advised ADWEEK.

3. Intestine Amsterdam Defends Gold Lion for “Don’t Drink Hertog Jan”

What occurred: A LinkedIn submit from Dutch advert exec Jeroen van Eck questioned Intestine Amsterdam’s Gold Lion for its “Don’t Drink Hertog Jan” beer marketing campaign.

Eck alleges the work by no means ran at scale and stated the case examine misrepresents Intestine’s position within the model’s success. The strategist claimed that Isobar (now Dentsu Artistic) and Netherlands store The Valley deserve the actual credit score for the model’s technique.

The Valley and Dentsu Artistic are credited in Intestine’s 2025 Cannes entry as “extra corporations,” whereas Intestine is credited with “thought creation” for the work.

Some footage from the case examine matches that of a 2019 marketing campaign referred to as “Digital Ageing Cellar” made by Dentsu Artistic.

Intestine, which has been the AB InBev brewer’s AOR since 2023, defended its win in a joint assertion with The Valley supplied to ADWEEK.