2026 Winner

CASE SUMMARY

For nearly two decades, Air Canada’s name was synonymous with basketball as the naming rights sponsor of Toronto's Raptors arena. When that partnership ended, so did a powerful cultural connection between Canada’s national airline and its only professional basketball team.

Then came a rare opportunity: the Raptors’ first-ever jersey retirement for none other than Vince Carter, the man who earned the nickname “Air Canada” for his high-flying dunks. The moment was tailor-made for a to reignite that connection. But instead of looking backward, they looked up.

The campaign objectives were clear: to re-establish Air Canada as a key piece of Raptors culture, drive fan engagement and build a positive brand halo tied to national pride and honour Carter’s legacy.

This campaign was rooted in a deep cultural truth: that Vince Carter’s legacy is inseparable from Canada’s basketball story, and consequently, Air Canada’s. When the news of Carter’s jersey retirement was announced, they validated the idea of thanking him through social listening to solidify the on-going connection between Vince’s nickname and the Air Canada brand.

It’s undeniable that no Toronto Raptors player is more iconic than Vince Carter. Nicknamed “Air Canada” in 1999 for his gravity-defying dunks, he was a catalyst for the rise of basketball in Canada. While Vince may have left the Raptors in 2004, twenty years later he was coming home to retire his jersey in the same arena where it all began.

With timing of the essence, strategy shared the idea with the Air Canada creative leads, turned a brief around in less than 24 hours and the team had creative ready and presented to client in a few days.

While most jerseys are raised to the rafters, the brand raised Carter’s number higher than anyone has ever seen, onto the side of a real aircraft; the world’s highest retirement ceremony for the league’s highest flyer.

A custom A220 aircraft was wrapped and styled after the banner that would be raised in the Raptor’s arena, complete with Carter’s number, signature and iconic dunking silhouette. Air Canada then put the plane into rotation, allowing number 15 to take off and be raised to the skies with every flight.

A fitting tribute for the league’s highest flyer. A powerful way to prove that while their name may no longer be on the arena, it still belongs in the air.

And then they made it personal. At the plane’s unveiling, Vince Carter himself showed up and joined fans, influencers, and media to witness the reveal in-person. Carter even signed a wing on the plane, to reinforce the legacy. His emotional response turned a bold idea into a moment of national pride – and one of the most talked about brand stories of the year.

They launched the campaign on social channels, and fans immediately began to post like crazy. To continue the momentum for Air Canada, they released the commemorative plane’s registration number, C-GUPG – a unique, globally recognized identifier assigned by the national aviation authority, similar to a car’s license plate, to identify and track aircraft, so fans could follow the plane using flight tracking technology, such as FlightRadar24, to see where the flight would pop up next.

To ensure the campaign lived far beyond the tarmac, they launched an integrated ecosystem of content, OOH, PR, and social activations. The takeover of Yonge & Dundas Square put the jersey front and center in one of the country’s most iconic spaces.

A stadium takeover at Carter's retirement game brought our message home to fans in the arena. And across social, they invited Raptors Nation to celebrate both Carter's and Air Canada's legacy.

By targeting a passionate, nostalgic audience of Raptors fans aged 25-40 – many of whom grew up with Carter as their hero, they reignited a dormant cultural connection. And by honoring Carter with a uniquely Canadian, never-before-seen gesture, they reinserted Air Canada into the Raptors’ cultural narrative in a way no other brand could.

“Born to Fly” started a social conversation that was equal parts Vince Carter and Air Canada, returning them both to prominence on Canada’s NBA stage. With over 1200 cross-country flights for the Vince Carter plane, “Born to Fly” successfully made Air Canada synonymous with the Raptors again.

The results speak volumes: the campaign reignited Air Canada’s association with the Raptors, generating more #AirCanada mentions than #VinceCarter during the campaign peak. It also delivered $55.8 million in earned media with $0 in celebrity endorsements, including stories on TSN, Sportsnet, Boardroom, the Globe & Mail, TrendHunter, and NBA.com, among others. The campaign drove strong engagement, with social achieving an engagement rate double Air Canada’s average performance, while also creating a positive brand halo for Air Canada, reflected in a 334% increase in positive brand mentions.

And perhaps most powerful of all: they made an NBA Hall of Famer cry. Because this wasn’t just a campaign – it was a tribute. The reinvention of a ritual. And a masterclass in how a brand can reclaim cultural relevance not through a logo or a sponsorship, but through a bold, emotional idea that soars beyond the rafters.

“Born to Fly” wasn’t just boundary-pushing. It was history-making. And it proved that while some numbers belong in the rafters, others deserve to fly.

Credits

Client
VP, Brand: Andrew Shibata
Director, Sponsorship Marketing: Martine Boulerice
Manager, Sponsorship Marketing: Kim Desrochers
Director, Customer Comms: Madeline Long-Duke
Director, Brand Strategy and Content Marketing: John Xydous
Sr Manager Content Marketing: Pascale St-Amand
Content Marketing Manager: Alexia Quilez
Sr Manager Content Production: Bailey Stead
Photography: Celian Genier
Videographer & editor: Lucca Carvalho De Lima Silva, Mike Chantaj
Manager, Social Media: Jenifer Yu
Manager, Social Media Ops: Samantha Etane
Social Content and Community Manager: Jenna Hum
CD: Dzeneta Zunic
Creative Studio Lead: Bettina Carating
Sr Manager Creative Studio Ops & Dsgn: Lucinda Hancock
Graphic Designers: Dan Colosimo, Rachel Solakis, Anastasiia Sheciakova
Manager, Brand & Corp Events: Benjamin Trattner
Agency
CCO: Nancy Crimi-Lamanna
ECD: Jeremiah McNama
ACD: Coleman Mallery
Sr Art Director: Sanna Kula
Copywriter: Coleman Mallery
Designer: Manjo Gabor
IP: Stephanie Springett
Retoucher: Carly Bright, Marcell Faucher
VP Content Lead: Ravi Singh
GAD: Rose Noble
Account Supervisor: Joe Aparna, Tyler Huntley-Doherty
CSO: Shelley Brown
VP Strategy: Shelagh Hartford
Strategy Director: Allison Lochhead
MLSE
SVP Global Partnerships Jordan Vader
Director Global Partnerships Dave Sheedy
Account Manager Global Partnerships Sehaj Bhachu
Digital Strategist Global Partnerships Daniel Meneley
Manager Media and Project Management Graham Latchford
Sr Director Partnership Marketing Kimberlee Welch
Director Commercial Strategy Morgan Todd
Manager Strategy, Commercial Marketing Nick Ardito
SVP Communications Dave Haggith
Manager Corporate Communications Victoria Malisani
Sr Director Strategy & Growth Marketing Terri Mattuci
Sr Manager Strategy & Growth Marketing Taylor Mansillo
Digital Strategy Manager Gabriella Cook
Digital Content Manager Toronto Raptors Samantha Skeen
PR: Weber Shandwick
Offline Media: Initiative
Online Media: ACMD