Summer of Sport
With the weather changing and nights getting longer in the UK, it has come as no surprise to see brands beginning to activate in store to align with this. ‘Night In’ themes are appearing across consumer promotions, with prize pools to reflect the time consumers will be spending at home.
Next month, we will be rounding up the spookiest Halloween activations to share with you. There are already some amazing (and dubious) activations and partnerships hitting shelves.
A Hectic & Weird Month
The level of activity this month has been truly unprecedented compared to a quieter start to the year. Brands are targeting the summer heavily. With the World Cup, Wimbledon, and a wider summer of sport in full swing, we are seeing so many brands activating and fiercely competing for shelf space.
The dominant approach right now is the win promotion. The sheer volume of these competitions is staggering.
To give an idea of the saturation, during a recent visit to one Sainsbury’s Local, every single beer multipack featured a win promotion on the packaging. With so much noise and so many brands vying for shopper attention, we have tried to summarise and capture the best of the months’ activations.
Tapas and Tinnies
“This Estrella Damm chiller brilliantly targets summer sharing occasions by merging shopping missions near the till. Offering chilled beer in a high-footfall impulse zone drives immediate consumption. It’s a prime example of cross-category merchandising while providing crucial visibility for NPD away from aisle and the noise of competitor brands.” – GC View
This chilled mobile display showcases a clever partnership between Estrella Damm and Unearthed, perfectly timed for summer picky bits season. Grouping authentic Spanish beers and tapas together disrupts the shopper journey, driving impulse cross-category purchases for Mediterranean-style sharing occasions.
Game, Set, Snack!
“The ‘Game, Set, Snack!’ promotion uses a simple purchase mechanic, but makes it more engaging by rewarding repeat participation through QR code scans. The combination of guaranteed local prizes and an aspirational global grand prize creates broad appeal, while giving the overall winner the chance to choose and play a 30-minute sporting challenge against Carlos Alcaraz makes the experience feel personal, memorable, and once-in-a-lifetime.” – GC View
Celebrating new Global Ambassador Carlos Alcaraz, GetPRO’s multi-country promo has shoppers scan QR codes on limited-edition yoghurt or pouches. More scans unlock more entries. Each country awards a meet-and-greet, whilst one overall global winner chooses a 30-minute sporting challenge to play against Carlos himself.
Lidl’s Ultimate Mix Up
“It’s great to see supermarket own brands like Freeway Cola cutting through the dominance of the major brands, by cleverly aligning with Diageo’s iconic spirits portfolio. A link save is a simple but effective way to drive footfall while building awareness and credibility for the Freeway range, and not something often we see in Lidl!” – GC View
Lidl in Europe is elevating its Freeway own-label soft drinks by co-branding with Diageo giants like Gordon’s and Smirnoff. By bundling the spirit and mixer into a single handy pack, Lidl bypasses the usual decision between large brands like Coke or Pepsi. This offer perfectly captures impulse outdoor drinking occasions just as the warm summer weather arrives.
Serving 80s Nostalgia
“Nostalgia only works when it moves culture forward. The best nostalgia doesn’t ask people to look back, it gives them a reason to engage today. Waitrose used Rivals as a cultural shortcut, creating a playful, design-led retail experience that felt fresh, relevant and highly social, rather than simply retro.” – GC View
aitrose’s partnership with Disney+ hit Rivals translates 80s nostalgia into premium grocery. FSDUs in store blend the original Jilly Cooper novel, retro NPD like Steak Diane crisps, and RTD cocktails. The displays merge entertainment and retail, targeting the ‘watch party’ occasion. Presented by F&BM © 202
The King of Crisps
“IGreat brand collaborations deserve standout retail execution. The oversized burger-shaped POS elevates the Burger King x Pringles partnership beyond the shelf, creating an unmissable in-store moment that reinforces the campaign’s playful, disruptive spirit.” – GC View
Pringles and Burger King have teamed up for a disruptive co-branded campaign, launching limited-edition burgerflavoured crisps. In-store, massive 3D burger displays create unmissable theatre, while a nationwide sampling tour in a branded retro van brings the experience directly to convenience shoppers, driving mass trial.
Official World Cup Sponsors Score Big In Store
Win Big With Bud
Flexing its official sponsor status, Budweiser uses the iconic FIFA World Cup 26 trophy on limited-edition packs. An easy QR scan to win highly sought-after tickets drives authentic standout and rapid basket conversion.
Watch Party
Official sponsors Coca-Cola, Budweiser, and Doritos unite to create a massive ‘watch party’ destination. This theatrical archway and digital screen dominate the floor, driving total cross-category basket spend.
Peel to Collect
Coca-Cola teams up with Panini for a classic ‘peel to collect 12’ sticker promo. Tapping into deep football nostalgia, it drives strong repeat purchase by brilliantly gamifying the shopper journey across the tournament.
Personal Care
Official FIFA sponsors Sure and Hisense unite to disrupt the personal care aisle. Winning a premium TV with any Sure purchase cleverly connects daily routines directly to the ultimate at-home match viewing occasion.
Taste the World Cup
Walkers fuels tournament fever with limited-edition drops inspired by national team flavours. This clever nod to competing countries builds basket urgency, driving impulse sharing purchases for summer watch parties.
Crashing The World Cup Party – Unofficial Partners
Seeing Red
19 Crimes unofficially hijacks the summer World Cup with its “Serve the Red” promo. Nodding to the red card, it uses match day language to position wine as the ultimate at-home viewing upgrade.
Declan Delivers
Avoiding official sponsorships, Cadbury capitalises on tournament fever by fronting this endcap with England’s Declan Rice. Pitch visuals and a frictionless Nectar card entry fuel impulse sales with a seamless sports tie-in.
Golden Ballz
Cheez-It brings gamification to the aisle with a £10k ‘Find the Golden Ball’ promo. This standout promo subtly nods to the summer of football, using a high-value prize and quick scan mechanic to drive rapid trial.
The Perfect Match Ball
Buzzballz cleverly uses its iconic spherical packaging to mimic a football. Dropping limited-edition flavours for various World Cup team, perfectly positions these RTD cocktails for summer watchparty occasions.
Kick Off With Cereal
Kellogg’s targets families with a tangible on-shelf Gift With Purchase. Displaying free branded footballs directly above the cereal sparks instant pester power, driving volume during the summer tournament season.
The Father’s Day Whiskey Takeover
A Dram Good Gift
Suntory’s Morrisons bay paired iconic whiskies with free Father’s Day cards. To add value, shoppers could claim a complimentary virtual whisky masterclass to share with Dad.
Claim Your Turf
Laphroaig’s Father’s Day promo offers an unforgettable gift: an honorary plot of land on Islay with every purchase. This clever campaign adds brilliant sentimental value to the whisky rooted in its origins.
A Classic Round
Glen Moray tees off in Morrisons with a simple scan-to-win promo. By purchasing any bottle and scanning a More Card, shoppers get a chance to win one of 10 pairs of tickets to the 2026 Senior Open.
Wimbledon Winners
The Mountain of Youth
Evian celebrates 200 years with an AR scan-to-win promo. Scanning on-pack QR codes lets shoppers explore the “Mountain of Youth” to win 2027 Wimbledon VIP tickets and exclusive player bottles.
Advantage Lanson
Lanson serves up a striking Wimbledon display in Tesco. Framed by a giant tennis ball arch, this unmissable unit offers Clubcard shoppers a discount on the premium champagne, perfect for summer watch parties.
A Perfect Serve
Stella Artois serves Wimbledon nostalgia with a limited-edition Strawberries & Cream lager. Complete with strawberry and tennis ball graphics, this clever NPD taps into the iconic tournament’s famous summer treat.
Passport Packing Promos
Brooklyn Boarding Pass
rooklyn Brewery leans into its heritage by offering an authentic trip to Brooklyn, NYC. This high-value, on-pack QR promo reinforces brand identity while driving summer impulse purchases.
Ibiza Calling
San Miguel perfectly aligns its Spanish roots with summer drinking occasions by offering a highly desirable trip to Ibiza. The simple on-pack scan mechanic effectively drives visibility and volume.
Sun, Sea, and Savings
Capri-Sun’s Jet2holidays partnership is a masterclass in adding value. Alongside winning a family holiday, guaranteeing £70 off for every entry provides an irresistible mass-appeal purchase driver.
Chasing the Sun
Kopparberg captures the ultimate summer feeling with its “Bring me sunshine” promo. Offering a sun-soaked trip to Malta perfectly positions the cider as the go-to choice for warm-weather refreshment.
La Dolce Vita
Poretti stays true to its premium Italian heritage by offering an authentic ‘Grand Tour of the Great Italian Lakes’. This aspirational prize beautifully reinforces the brand’s sophisticated identity.
Sainsbury’s Serves Up Summer
Sainsbury’s has delivered a retail masterclass in occasion led drinks marketing this month, capturing every summer shopper mission. Standout merchandising tactics include co-branded cocktail displays targeting picnics, summer parties, clever recipe blockers to inspire at home mixology, and high visibility ready to drink fixtures for hot weather impulse buys.
Rounding out the strategy are curated summer wine selections and a disruptive, fully branded Yellow Tail bank holiday barbecue bay.
Brands Buddy Up for Summer
We are seeing a significant rise in cross-category collaborations as brands team up to own larger consumption occasions. By joining forces, unrelated drink and snack brands are successfully securing premium off-fixture display space.
Standout examples include an immersive Aperol and Tyrrells summer spritz archway, BrewDog and Pipers creating a premium pairing, and Proper snacks teaming up with Dash water
Food for Thought…
Sofa Spectators
UK consumers are expected to hit record spending of £1.95bn on at home food and drink this World Cup. Later kick offs mean fans are watching from the sofa, driving unprecedented grocery sales.
Voucher Codes
Quality Over Value?
For the first time, quality drives consumer’s food to go choices. 78% of are quality led in their choices. While 74% remain value led, showing the beginnings of a clear trend.
Lumina Intelligence
RTD Revolution
Ready-to-drink alcohol is booming. A massive 44% of RTD sales now come from shoppers shifting spend away from traditional spirits, seeking affordable convenience and driving category growth by 17%.
WSTA / NIQ
Grocery Shops Turn to AI
Over 1 in 3 shoppers used AI for groceries in the past six months. From comparing prices (66%) to researching products (47%), consumers are rapidly adopting tech to find value and complete daily purchases.
Grocery Gazette
Functional Drinks Lead
Functional drinks (sports/energy) have surpassed traditional carbonated soft drinks (like cola) for the first time, reflecting changing tastes. Functional drinks now capture 41% of the category (up from 29.5%).
The Grocer
