Win a Stressful Trip to Cannes: Canadian Young Lions Competition Registration Now Open

Registration for The Globe and Mail’s 2025 Canadian Young Lions Competition is officially open. From now until February 9, 2025, Canada’s young creative minds can register to compete for the opportunity to represent the country on the world stage at the Global Young Lions Competition at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in Cannes, France.

The Canadian Young Lions Competition has long been a cornerstone of the creative industry, offering young professionals the chance to showcase their ingenuity in one of six competitive categories: Print, Film, Digital, Media, Marketers, and, new to Canada in 2025, PR and Design.

The 2025 competition introduces the new PR category, proudly sponsored by Edelman Canada. Edelman joins the lineup of sponsors, which also includes Interac as the sponsor of the Marketers category and Snap Inc., returning as the Media category sponsor. This year’s competition also benefits from the creative expertise of LG2, which has contributed to its design, and Edelman Canada, whose PR support has helped amplify its reach and visibility.

Over the weekend of March 1 to March 3, 2025, creativity, innovation, and grit will take center stage as teams of two participate in the competition. Teams will receive a creative brief and must complete the challenge for their respective category within 24 or 48 hours. Submissions are judged by a panel of industry leaders within each category, and Canadian Gold, Silver, and Bronze winners will be announced on April 30, 2025 at the CMDC Media Summit.

In addition to being crowned as Canada’s best, Gold-winning teams win a trip to Cannes, France, to compete against the best creative teams all over the world in the Global Young Lions Competition and attend the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity from June 16 to 20, 2025, the largest gathering in the creative marketing community.

As the Canadian Competition Representative, The Globe and Mail covers registration fees, delegate passes, flights, and accommodation for competitors traveling to Cannes, France.

The 2025 Canadian Young Lions competition is further supported by the addition of new advisory board members Bianca Freedman, CEO, Edelman Canda and Sabaa Quao, Chief Creative and Innovation officer, Cossette. Their insights and guidance will help shape the future of the program. For the full list of advisory board members, visit the updated board page here.

Marcin Zerek, head of trade marketing, The Globe and Mail, said, “We’re thrilled to kick off another exciting year of the Young Lions Competition. With the introduction of the new PR and Design categories, this year promises to highlight even more of the creativity, energy, and determination that make Canada’s young talent stand out on the global stage.”

“At Edelman, we’re passionate about creativity that drives impact. The Canadian Young Lions Competition showcases the future of our industry, and we are thrilled to support emerging talent and see their ingenuity unfold at Cannes,” said Bianca Freedman, CEO, Edelman Canada.

“We couldn’t be more excited for Interac to join the Young Lions Competition as sponsor of the Marketing category. We believe in the power of creative marketing and the impact it can have on brands and businesses, and it’s an honour to be supporting and recognizing the next generation of marketing talent in Canada,” said Matt Houghton, digital and integrated marketing lead, Interac.

“For the second consecutive year we are proud to partner with the Canadian Young Lions Competition to champion the thriving, creative talent ecosystem in Canada. Uplifting and celebrating the future of Canada's media industry both here and on the ground in Cannes is an exceptionally important opportunity, and we are excited to see the groundbreaking work Canadians bring to the world stage again this year,” said Matt McGowan, general manager, Canada, Snap Inc.

Co-Chairs for the 2025 Canadian Young Lions Competition

Young Lions Design Co-Chairs

• Stephanie Yung, Chief Design Officer, Zulu Alpha Kilo
• Laura Stein, Creative Director, Bruce Mau Design

Young Lions PR Co-Chairs 

• Shauna Roe, Vice President, Creative Director, Canada, Edelman Canada
• Eva Salem, Senior Vice-President, Marketing and Brand, Canadian Tire

Young Lions Marketers Co-Chair 

• Susan Irving, Chief Marketing Officer, Kruger Products

Young Lions Film/Print Co-Chairs

• Mary Maddever, EVP & Editorial Director, Brunico Communications
• Luc Du Sault, Partner and CCO, LG2

Young Lions Media Co-Chairs

• Brooke Leland, Managing Partner, Jungle Media
• Shannon Lewis, President, CMDC

Young Lions Digital Co-Chairs

• Karen Howe, Founder, The Township Group
• Sabaa Quao, Chief Creative and Innovation Officer, Cossette

For full competition guidelines and to register, visit here.