Digiday Daily

June 29, 2026

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At the height of the summer soccer tournament, Digiday has seen firsthand how Unilever’s creator plan has played out: It has activated 50,000 creators and influencers worldwide, tapped thousands for its House of Fresh-branded pop-ups in New York City, Miami and Mexico City across 10 days and brought top influencers pitch-side to World Cup matches.

Though the company declined to give more details regarding budget and ROI targets, Sarah Potter, influencer and media director for Dove Personal Care, told Digiday Unilever is focused on owning moments before, during, and after the games.

TOP STORY

The Creator Economy

‘A Super Bowl every two days’: Inside Unilever’s 50,000-creator World Cup play

50,000 creators activated globally, massive in-person pop-ups in host cities, and more are all part of Unilever’s World Cup creator push.

OTHER THINGS TO KNOW

Join us in Miami, September 14-16 at the Digiday Publishing Summit to hear how media companies are building and adapting their business models to address and overcome current industry challenges.
The most valuable influencer in a given category probably has no followers, no media kit and no idea they’re influencing anyone. They’re the leader of a friend group. When they pay, their friends do too. Partner insights from PayPal Ads.
According to a recent Digiday and Piano survey, the majority of publishers (84%) are currently using or actively piloting AI tools for ad sales or ad operations, including proposal generation and campaign management. Partner insights from Piano.

A MESSAGE FROM BLOCKBOARD

How to run campaigns like the big brands and launch in minutes

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CANNES LIONS 2026

Beyond Ads

Cannes Briefing: The Cannes confessional

Cannes is soft win. Attendees showed up and so did everyone else and the showing up is the whole transaction.

Member exclusive

Media Buying Briefing: The holdco tech heads expound on the ups and downs of building AI

As AI becomes a bigger and broader part of the holding company model, their tech heads seek opportunity while grappling with challenges.

PARTNER INSIGHTS FROM BLOCKBOARD

For programmatic, AI is a transparency-forcing function

When humans were managing campaigns manually — setting bids, reviewing placements, making optimization decisions — nobody expected perfect visibility into every dollar. AI doesn’t work that way.

PARTNER INSIGHTS FROM EXPERIAN

How healthcare marketers can navigate a mixed-identity world

What comes next for healthcare marketers is not a choice between deterministic and privacy-forward advertising. The differentiator will be building data and measurement infrastructure that connects fragmented signals and maintains compliance, operational flexibility and trust.