Coca-Cola Launches Global Media Review, WPP And Publicis Set For Fresh Agency Battle
Coca-Cola has launched a global media review, with WPP and Publicis competing for a major portion of its international advertising business.
SociapaHQ
Coca-Cola Company has started a global media review, sparking a new battle between its current agency partner WPP and rival Publicis Groupe for a sizable share of its international advertising business.
According to media reports, the review is part of a routine contract renewal process after Coca-Cola’s five-year partnership with WPP that began in late 2021.
The review will cover media, data science and technology services across most of Coca-Cola’s major global markets. The process is expected to begin in July 2026 and be completed later in the year. Media consultancy MediaSense has been appointed to manage the process.
Also Read: TukTuki Crosses 1 Million Downloads as India’s Micro-Drama Market Gains Momentum
High-Stakes Pitch:
The review is only media and data technology. Its global creative and public relations mandates for Coca-Cola are not up for grabs and will stay at WPP Open X.
The analysis does not include North America, Japan and Korea. Publicis will retain the North American media business for Coca-Cola after winning the account in 2025, while Dentsu will continue to be responsible for Japan and Korea.
WPP now manages around 90% of Coca-Cola’s media business in the rest of the international markets through Open X, a dedicated unit established to manage the beverage giant’s creative, production and media needs in more than 200 countries and territories. The brief includes a number of key growth markets such as India.
Coca-Cola said it spent $5.4 billion globally on advertising in 2025, but it does not break out media spending so it is unclear what the value of the international media business under review is.
Publicis is now taking over Coca-Cola, which lost its global agency consolidation pitch to WPP in 2021. Since then the French advertising group has strengthened its relationship with the drinks company through its North American media mandate.
Also Read: Meta Oversight Board Criticises Account Ban Process, Calls for Greater Transparency
Commenting on the upcoming review, WPP said it welcomed the opportunity to defend the business.
“The upcoming five-year contract renewal process coincides with Coca-Cola’s Next Chapter initiative. We welcome the opportunity to showcase how our integrated media, data science and agentic technology platform and solutions will continue to drive future growth across their key global markets,” the company said in a statement.
The review also has broader implications for the industry. After WPP won Coca-Cola’s global network mandate in 2021, rival beverage company PepsiCo moved several advertising assignments from WPP agencies to Publicis in a number of Asian markets.
