Observed Signal · Jul 21, 2026 · Ranking Update · Source: The Drum · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Neutral
VML New York Tops Mid‑Year World Creative Rankings
The Drum's mid-year World Creative Rankings leaderboard places VML New York provisional number one at the halfway point of 2026, after the agency climbed from eighth in the previous annual rankings. Ogilvy Singapore is second and Rethink Toronto third. Uncommon Creative Studio London made the largest leap, rising from 180th to fourth, driven by multiple awarded campaigns. The Drum analysed 1,059 campaigns from 691 advertisers working with 606 agencies to produce the mid-year report. Rankings remain provisional with further awards still to be decided; The Drum plans to publish the complete annual World Creative Rankings targeted for late 2026 rather than the usual February release.
Mid‑year agency rankings are of interest to creative and agency communities and reflect award momentum, but they do not change core AdTech or platform policy and have limited immediate impact on broader industry infrastructure.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- VML New York is provisional number one on The Drum’s World Creative Rankings Mid‑Year Leaderboards (moved from 8th).
- Uncommon Creative Studio London rose from 180th in the annual rankings to 4th at mid‑year.
- Ogilvy Singapore is provisional second and Rethink Toronto provisional third.
- The Drum analysed 1,059 campaigns from 691 advertisers working with 606 agencies for the mid‑year report.
- The Drum will publish the complete annual World Creative Rankings targeted for late 2026 (earlier than its historical February release).
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Ogilvy and WPP Lead Mid-Year Creative Rankings
The Drum's mid-year World Creative Rankings leaderboards show Ogilvy retaining the top network spot and WPP holding first among holding companies at the halfway point of 2026. Significant climbs include Leo Constellation (to third) and LePub (to fourth) in the network table, while Publicis Groupe and Havas have moved up in the holding company standings. The tables are provisional, reflecting awards counted so far; The Drum analysed 1,059 campaigns from 691 advertisers working with 606 agencies. The publisher plans to release the full annual World Creative Rankings in late 2026, moving the final tables closer to real time.
World Creative Rankings: 2026 Mid‑Year Leaders Revealed
The Drum published its World Creative Rankings mid-year leaderboards on July 21, 2026, highlighting the agencies, advertisers, holding companies, networks and campaigns leading the global awards circuit at the halfway point of 2026. The Drum analyzed 1,059 campaigns from 691 advertisers working with 606 agencies to compile the report. Mid-week follow-ups release advertiser, holding company/network and campaign leaderboards on July 22–24. The Drum also said it will publish the complete annual World Creative Rankings earlier than usual — targeting late 2026 rather than the following February — and listed the awards included across Majors, Regional and Local categories.
Top 50 Creatives at Cannes Lions 2026
The Drum published a ranked list of the top individual creative and craft practitioners credited on Cannes Lions 2026 winning work. The ranking isolates Cannes results from the World Creative Rankings mid-year leaderboard and is credit-based: individual credits attached to winning entries were weighted by award prestige and repeat appearances. VML’s Debbi Vandeven is ranked first, followed by Rafael Pitanguy (VML) and Liz Taylor (Ogilvy). The table highlights agency concentration at the top, with multiple credited talents from VML, LePub, Grey, McCann, Gut and Adam&Eve\TBWA. The published table contains 53 names because five people are tied for 49th. The article was published on 2026-07-23.
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