Author: Anna Fanchini

The European Institute for Commercial Communications Education (edcom) and the European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA) are pleased to announce the shortlist of the 18th annual advertising student competition, Ad Venture, in collaboration with Kraft Heinz.

Ad Venture is the first pan-European competition that empowers over 300 communication students from across Europe and beyond to tackle real-life cases presented by actual clients. The winning team will enjoy an extraordinary opportunity to attend the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity!

For the 2025 – 2026 edition, edcom partnered with Heinz, a globally recognised brand with over 150 years of history, known for its unmistakably rich products and deeply satisfying taste experiences. Heinz goes the extra mile in everything they do, crafting each product with care, obsession, and quality to deliver a deeply satisfying, uplifting experience.

The finalists of the 2025-2026 edition

Our jury of academics and industry representatives has evaluated the submitted projects. Out of 75 teams that entered the competition, only 10 were set to advance to the final stage.

Every Chaos Needs a Starting Point, Pantheon-Assas University, Paris

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For the one that…, New Bulgarian University, Bulgaria

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Heinz Doesn’t Judge – The Oven, Thomas More University of Applied Sciences, Belgium

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If Heinz Could Talk…, CEU Cardenal Herrera University, Spain

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Is It a Crime?, Pantheon-Assas University, Paris

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No Games. Just Heinz, University of the Arts London, UK

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Spot The Heinz, Pantheon-Assas University, Paris

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Team 13, ESP – École Supérieure de Publicité, Communication et Marketing, Paris

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THE RED FLAG YOU NEED, University of Bucharest, Romania

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You’ve been Heinzed, Breda University of Applied Sciences, Netherlands

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What is happening next?

Nine jurors will be invited to an online session on February 26th, moderated by our Jury Chair, Mafalda Quintela. Jurors will assess the shortlisted projects and select the three best works that will advance to the final stage of the competition. The three finalists will pitch to our jury and the client on March 26th in Lisbon, Portugal.

The top three teams will be announced on Tuesday, March 10.

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For more information, please contact Francesco, Project Officer at Francesco.bottegal@eaca.eu

Notes to Editors

About Ad Venture Student Competition

Organised by the European Institute for Commercial Communications Education (edcom) and the European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA), Ad Venture is the first Pan-European competition that gives students the opportunity to experience what it is like to work in advertising by creating their own campaign in response to a brief from a real client.

About edcom

edcom is the European Institute for Commercial Communications Education. It strives to promote excellence in commercial communications education and research and to further exchanges between the European commercial communications sector and academic partners. Edcom was founded by EACA together with the founding academic partners in 2007. Find us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

About EACA

The European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA) represents more than 2 500 communications agencies and agency associations from nearly 30 European countries that directly employ more than 120 000 people. EACA members include advertising, media, digital, branding and PR agencies. EACA works closely with EU institutions to ensure freedom to advertise responsibly and creatively. For more information, visit www.eaca.eu. Connect with us on Twitter, Facebook & LinkedIn.

We are happy to announce that this year’s Ad Venture jury will bring together 24 leading agencies and 13 academic institutions from across Europe, enriching both the competition and the experience for young talents.

The Ad Venture Competition 2025-2026, in collaboration with Kraft Heinz, one of the world’s leading food companies, allows students to tackle real-life marketing challenges and showcase their creativity, strategic thinking, and problem-solving skills.

This year’s jury will review and evaluate the submitted projects based on creativity, strategic thinking, and overall effectiveness. Their combined expertise ensures a rigorous, fair, and inspiring evaluation process for all participants.

We are proud to collaborate with such accomplished professionals and look forward to their valuable insights and contributions throughout this year’s edition of Ad Venture.

Meet the agencies and academic institutions joining this year’s Ad Venture jury:

Agencies:

• 180HB — Poland
• All Channels Group — Bulgaria
• BetterSvit — Ukraine
• dentsu — Italy
• EssenceMediacom Poland — Poland
• HeimatTBWA — Germany
• Hvita used — Iceland
• Innocean — Germany
• Kantar
• McCann Worldgroup Romania — Romania
• McCann Manchester — United Kingdom
• McCann Worldgroup Spain — Spain
• Media First Ukraine — Ukraine
• Next Different — Italy
• Pastel — Romania
• REBORNN — Greece
• Robert Boison & Likeminded — Denmark
• SEK — Finland
• TBWA\Italy — Italy
• TBWA\Warsaw — Poland
• THIS IS LOCCO — Slovakia
• WOPA — Romania
• White Label — Latvia

Academic Institutions:

• Deree – The American College of Greece
• FSPAC – College of Political, Administrative and Communication Sciences
• Howest – University College West Flanders
• ISCOM Paris
• King’s College London
• New Bulgarian University
• Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences, Athens
• Pantheon-Assas University, Paris
• The Hague University of Applied Sciences, Netherlands
• Thomas More University of Applied Sciences, Belgium
• Tomas Bata University in Zlín, Czechia
• University for the Creative Arts, UK
• University of Applied Sciences Wiener Neustadt, Austria

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The December Edcom Members’ Meeting took place on 9 December at the WPP Campus in Brussels, gathering educators and industry partners for an afternoon of constructive discussion and collaboration. A warm thank you to all who joined and contributed to another successful edition.

Updates from the Secretariat

The Secretariat shared the latest developments across the network. While edcom continues to attract interest from institutions, recent departures and persistent regional gaps highlight the need to strengthen recruitment efforts, particularly in Northern, Eastern, and Southern Europe. Members were encouraged to invite potential partners and to engage with their National Associations (NACs), which can support mobility and membership processes.

Highlights from the Presentations

The agenda featured three insightful presentations.
• The Public Affairs update offered an overview of major EU digital and media regulations, including the AI Act, the Democracy Shield, and new rules on political advertising.
Access to the presentation is exclusive to EACA/edcom members. Please email anna.fanchini@eaca.eu or francesco.bottegal@eaca.eu to receive the materials.

• The Ad Net Zero update reflected on this year competition’s judging process, shared survey results, and outlined opportunities for deeper collaboration on sustainability.

•The AI & Immersive Technologies in Education presentation highlighted the importance of a structured approach to integrating AI and immersive technologies in education. It also emphasized fostering student creativity by encouraging them to start projects without AI.

Key Themes and Strategic Directions

Discussions throughout the meeting centred on edcom’s future strategy. Members reviewed the development of the Value Proposition, which will help articulate what edcom offers to students, programme leaders, universities, industry partners, and alumni. Strengthening industry collaboration, enhancing alumni visibility, and supporting student employability were identified as central priorities.

AI and immersive technologies were also key themes, with members underscoring the importance of building AI literacy while encouraging students to begin the creative process independently before using AI tools.

Want to learn more about the meeting? Click here and access the full report.

Showcasing the Next Generation of Creative Talent at Effie Europe Day

On 10 December, during Effie Europe Day, edcom celebrated student excellence at the All Hands Meeting held at the Art & History Museum in Brussels. The 2025 Ad Venture winners, Charlotte van Roessel and Giulia Wolf, presented their project, which scooped first place at this year’s edcom Adventure Student Competition, organised in partnership with Taylor of Harrogate.
The session also featured the Ad Net Zero winners, Lélia Bterrani and Rory Harrison, who presented their sustainability‑driven project: a short creative video designed to educate and inspire audiences about Action 5 of the Ad Net Zero framework, which promotes sustainable consumer behaviour. Their compelling approach further reinforced edcom’s commitment to responsible creativity. Watch their winning project now.

Looking Ahead

Preparations are underway for the March 2026 Members’ Meeting, which will include expanded training elements. Members also expressed strong interest in organising an all-day online Green Conference during Black Friday week next year.

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