This summer presents a rare and powerful opportunity for brands. With a calendar full of major sporting events—from the UEFA Women’s EUROs™  and Wimbledon to the Tour de France and the Women’s Rugby World Cup—the stage is set, and the audience is already watching. In these moments, attention is plentiful. But emotional connection? That’s far more elusive.

Sport naturally stirs emotion. It brings tension, passion, pride—the kind of feelings that begin long before the whistle blows. The real opportunity for brands lies in tuning into that emotional current. When brands align with the rhythm of the game, when they amplify the experience rather than disrupt it, they create something far more meaningful: memory, trust, and legacy.

Emotional intelligence is at the heart of the work we’re most proud of. It’s not just about strategy or execution—it’s about empathy. A deep understanding of how people live, feel, and connect. That’s what turns a moment into a movement.

Bringing Emotion to Life: The UEFA Women’s EUROs™ 

Our campaign for the UEFA Women’s EUROs™  is a clear example of how we bring this thinking to life. While rooted in our global brand platform—“It won’t let you down”—we designed the work to flex around emotion, culture, our ambassadors story and local nuance.

  • In the UK, we focused on dependability. Lucy Bronze—calm, consistent, quietly brilliant—became the face of our 72-hour protection range. Just as she holds the line on the pitch, Rexona shows up for fans in the moments that matter.
  • In Germany, the emotional tone was different. The women’s team entered the tournament under pressure, facing high expectations and public scrutiny. That tension became part of our story. We partnered with Giulia Gwinn, a player known for her resilience and mental strength. Her energy shaped a creative platform focused on performance under pressure—brought to life through a striking street mural in Berlin and a “Play on Pitch” activation in Switzerland, where fans could step into the campaign and feel part of the moment.
  • In the Netherlands, the emotion was quieter but deeply personal. Vivianne Miedema’s return from injury gave us a powerful narrative of belief and recovery. We stripped away the gloss and leaned into raw, social-first content. No filters. Just honesty.

This wasn’t about pushing a single story across markets. It was about asking what the message meant to different people in different places. That shift—from saying to understanding—is where trust begins to grow.

Moving with Culture, Not Just Through It

In a season like this, when culture is alive, emotional, and loud, there’s power in moving with care. Listening longer. Asking better questions. Being curious about what people feel—not just what they’ll click on.

Because when a brand feels emotionally fluent in a moment, that’s when it earns its place.

Three Lessons We’re Taking Into Summer

  1. Culture starts with people.
    The better you understand what matters to them, the clearer your creative direction becomes.
  2. Don’t wait for the final whistle.
    Momentum builds in the lead-up. The emotional weight often lives in the anticipation and the aftermath—not just the main event.
  3. People might forget what you said, but they won’t forget how you made them feel.
    It’s a phrase we’ve all heard, but it remains true. Emotional impact is what lingers.

While this summer is packed with defining moments, we’re already looking ahead. This month marks one year to go until the FIFA Men’s World Cup 2026™. As a sponsor, we’ll carry these same lessons forward. Because showing up on the biggest stage only matters if you’ve been building real connection all along the way.

Emily will be speaking on the MAD//Sports stage at MAD//Fest on 3 July.