From Piste to Podium: The Ads Taking Home Effectiveness Gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics

Feb. 18, 2026

System1, the Creative Effectiveness Platform, has revealed the top-performing advertising campaigns from the 2026 Winter Olympics, with emotional storytelling, consistent brand execution and inspiring narratives of perseverance emerging as the strongest drivers of effectiveness.

With more than 100,000 ads, System1's Test Your Ad Competitive Edge platform is the world’s largest database of emotional response norms. Its Star Rating measures consumers’ emotional reaction to creative, scoring ads from 1.0 to 5.9 Stars to indicate their potential to drive long-term brand growth, while the Spike Rating captures emotional intensity and how quickly viewers recognise the brand, signalling short-term sales impact. Together, these metrics identify the ads most likely to command attention, build emotional engagement and deliver both immediate and sustained effectiveness.

From meticulously crafted tributes to athlete dedication to uplifting brand-led journeys of resilience, this year’s most effective Olympic advertising demonstrates that campaigns rooted in authentic human emotion continue to outperform.

Top 10 Winter Olympics ads Ranked by Star Rating:

• Michelob Ultra (Wieden+Kennedy), Ultra Instructor | US - 5.1 Stars
• Peacock TV, 2026 Winter Olympics | US – 5.0 Stars
• Corona (Grey), For Every Golden Moment | UK – 4.9 Stars
• NatWest (Pitch Agency), The Winter Team Talk | UK – 4.8 Stars
• Starbucks (Anomaly), Coffee Run | US – 4.4 Stars
• Hershey’s (The Martin Agency), Happiness is The Real Gold | US – 4.3 Stars
• Xfinity, Skater | US – 4.3 Stars
• Esselunga (Armando Testa) Esselunga nutre un sogno | Italy – 4.0 Stars
• Walmart (Fallon), Here’s to Starting | US – 3.8 Stars
• Honda (kissd), This is the Power of Dreams – Ideas into Actions | US – 3.8 Stars

Jon Evans, CCO at System1 and host of Uncensored CMO said:

"With the Super Bowl and the Winter Olympics landing at the same time, we’ve seen an incredible showcase of global creativity, craft, and storytelling. The Big Game always delivers star-powered spectacle, but what’s been equally inspiring is the distinctly human energy coming through in Olympic advertising. There’s a real focus on perseverance, dedication, and the limits of human skill, without relying on hype for its own sake. It’s a reminder that when brands and agencies lean into authentic emotion and meaningful stories, the work can be just as powerful as any celebrity-led moment. That spirit of creativity and human achievement is exactly what these Games are all about."