Brand-building Gold: Consumers' Favourite Olympics and Paralympics Ads

System1, the Creative Effectiveness Platform, today revealed which Paris Olympics & Paralympics ads are at the top of the brand-building podium, based on consumers’ emotional responses. System1’s Test Your Ad platform assigns creative a score of 1.0 to 5.9 Stars based on long-term brand-building potential, with dynamic emotional stories and feelings of happiness driving the strongest results.  

Thus far, the Paris 2024 ads have averaged 3.2 Stars, with Dicks Sporting Goods in the US taking home the gold medal, and Team Australia leading with the most ads in the top 10. Brands are successfully maximising the use of storytelling, talent and intellectual property to deliver emotion-led campaigns. One campaign has won the coveted 5-Star Rating, while 14 brands have achieved 4-Stars, predicting strong long-term brand-building potential. 

The top Olympics ads for 2024 are:   

• Dicks Sporting Goods (US) – “Big Moments Every Day” – 5.7 Stars 
• YES BANK (India) – “Cheer for Team India at the Paris Olympics 2024” – 4.9 Stars 
• Woolworths (Australia) – ”Fresh Fuels the Best in All of Us” – 4.8 Stars 
• Aldi (UK) – “Has Kevin Met His Match?” – 4.7 Stars   
• AAMI (Australia) – “When Our Athletes are in the Making” – 4.7 Stars  
• NBC Sports (US) - “Why is Sabrina in Paris?” - 4.6 Stars  
• Qantas (Australia) - “Qantas x Australian Olympic and Paralympic Teams” - 4.6 Stars 
• Rebel (Australia) – “Sport is Calling” – 4.6 Stars 
• BBC (UK) – “Paris 2024 Olympics | Official Trailer” – 4.4 Stars  
• Accor (France) – “Glace” - 4.3 Stars  

With the Olympics and Paralympics drawing in viewers from around the world, entertaining audiences is essential, and this year’s most successful ads have hit top marks by following a few key themes: 

• Hope helps drive happiness: Brands like Rebel and Woolworths have embraced the reward and payoff of hard work. Offering hope and inspiration aligns with the peak-end rule – ensuring the conclusion leaves audiences with an intense, positive feeling.  
• Sport brings people together: Woolworths and others highlighted the power of sport to unite communities, emphasising shared experiences and memories. Themes of togetherness, camaraderie, and compassion emerged prominently, driving universal and broad appeal.
• Humour offers brand-building gains: Seeing characters in humorous and unexpected situations is sure to put a smile on viewers’ faces and result in feelings of happiness and surprise. Aldi has Kevin the Carrot on a quest to light the Olympic torch, with a few funny obstacles along the way, and Accor features an employee going the extra mile for a guest with an ice cream cone mimicking the Olympic torch.
• Aspiring athletes are the stars: This year, brands like AAMI and Dicks celebrated athletes who, though not competing in the Olympics now, are gearing up for future events. Their storytelling, highlighting the journey and rewards of pursuing goals, uses children to keep the message hopeful and inspiring, portraying them as beacons of positivity and future potential.

"In the race for effectiveness medals, the brands that inspire and wow will win the hearts of viewers and build mental availability to drive long-term growth," noted Jon Evans, chief customer officer at System1. " Some advertisers are leveraging celebrity athletes while others are highlighting future hopefuls. Many are leaning into humour, a proven brand-building winner, and plenty are featuring distinctive brand assets like recurring characters, as well as rich storytelling to make their mark." 

To learn more about System1, visit here.