The news: Omnicom Media Group is expected to win Adidas’ global media account worth $512 million, according to sources cited by Adweek. Holding companies Publicis and WPP were reportedly eyeing the account, which was previously handled by WPP’s EssenceMediacom.

The account will be helmed by Omnicom agency PHD, which also manages clients like Google and Volkswagen.

Zooming out: The Adidas win marks another success for Omnicom following its 2025 merger with IPG. The holdco, now the largest globally by revenues, recently won accounts including Dyson and IBM; it also secured $3.65 billion in new client billings in 2025 and pre-IPG merger, per COMvergence.

Adidas has significantly increased its marketing spend around the 2026 FIFA World Cup; Adweek highlighted the brand’s major presence through player endorsements and branded gear.

Behind the win: Omnicom’s recent wins point to a modern agency landscape that favors those who can provide advanced data capabilities, technological fluency, and buying power.

• The Omnicom-IPG merger gave Omnicom a significant advantage in data and AI integration by combining IPG’s customer intelligence company Acxiom with Omnicom’s Flywheel commerce platform, significantly improving first-party data capabilities.
• Omnicom continues to be an early adopter of emerging technologies: The company is participating in OpenAI’s ad pilot, striking partnerships with technology leaders like Google and Meta, and expanding its enterprise genAI capabilities through intelligence platform Omni.
• The IPG merger has helped strengthen Omnicom’s market position, increasing its control over media buying and giving it greater leverage with publishers, platforms, and advertisers at a time when scale is becoming increasingly important.

Implications for agencies: An Adidas account win would reinforce ongoing changes to the agency landscape. Global marketers are no longer looking for media buying alone; they want partners that can combine scale, data, AI, commerce expertise, and measurable performance under one roof.

That demand raises the bar for agencies of all sizes. The combined Omnicom-IPG has an advantage through its stronger ability to bring together buying power, proprietary data assets, and technology partnerships in a way smaller rivals may struggle to match.

This content is part of EMARKETER’s subscription Briefings, where we pair daily updates with data and analysis from forecasts and research reports. Our Briefings prepare you to start your day informed, to provide critical insights in an important meeting, and to understand the context of what’s happening in your industry. Non-clients can click here to get a demo of our full platform and coverage.