Inside FMCG has compiled a selection of partnerships that have held their ground. They span global sport, national fixtures and local circuits, each one built with a clear sense of placement. Some operate at scale, moving through broadcast, venue and retail simultaneously, and others repeat across seasons until they are absorbed into routine. Beer at the footy, skincare in the athletes’ village, wine in the F1 paddock, vodka in the desert, L’Oréal at the Festival de Cannes. The strongest ex
examples hold position, return to it, extend it or create a legacy. Taken together, the partnerships detailed here demonstrate how FMCG now shows up in public. They are repeated, refined and extended until they become part of the event. Over time, they shape how products are used and how often they are bought.
In part three, Absolut, Penfolds and P&G go global, while XXXX and Stone & Wood prove local loyalty still matters.
Absolut x Coachella & Sydney Mardi Gras
The blueprint for staying relevant in an attention economy.
Since its genesis, Absolut has built its event presence around cultural flashpoints, from its early artist collaborations with Andy Warhol and Keith Haring to the phenomenon of Tomorrowland, all imbued in its bottle design. At Coachella, that means operating inside one of the most photographed and distributed festival environments in the world. Across two weekends each April, over 250,000 attendees move through the Coachella Valley, with Absolut positioned within VIP compounds and brand activations made for visibility and repeat interaction.
Absolut’s presence at events is rarely abstract and usually starts with flavour, a specific product and a specific moment of consumption. Recent cycles have centred on variants such as Absolut Watermelon and Absolut Juice. At Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, that translates into a menu engineered for pace, including vodka sodas, spritzes and pre-batched cocktails that can move quickly through volume without losing their identity. In other words, each drink carries the label with it.
In 2024, Paris Hilton fronted the brand’s Coachella program, appearing across both on-site activations and distributed content. The association was immediate and legible. Product, personality and setting were held together in the same frame.
That same approach finds another expression at Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. Absolut’s association with Mardi Gras places the brand within one of Australia’s most significant cultural events, tied to LGBTQIA+ communities, advocacy and celebration.
Owned by Pernod Ricard, Absolut has spent decades aligning itself with the LGBTQIA+ community. It’s explained in words by Kristy Rutherford, marketing director at Pernod Ricard Pacific as “championing equal love, freedom of expression and the safe spaces that foster inclusivity”.
One global, one local. One built on a behemoth festival, the other on community. In each, the brand is placed inside the moment and carried outward, held there long enough to register.
Procter & Gamble x Olympic Games
From everyday essentials to extraordinary achievement.
For more than a decade, Procter & Gamble has used the Olympic Games as a global platform for its brands, extending across athlete partnerships, on-ground services and retail campaigns in multiple markets.
At the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, that presence took form inside the athletes’ village. The “Champions Clubhouse” operated across both the Milano Olympic Village and the Cortina Paralympic Village, offering grooming, hair and scalp care, braiding services and recovery spaces. More than 3500 athletes were supported across the Games, alongside product distribution through Welcome Kits that included brands such as SK-II, Oral-B, Head & Shoulders and Gillette Venus.
The program is supported by a global roster of athlete partners across more than 25 brands, including alpine skier Mikaela Shiffrin, a four-time Olympic medallist, alongside athletes across 37 sports and 17 countries.
That foundation carries into local markets. In New Zealand, P&G’s partnership with Lisa Carrington, an eight-time Olympic gold medallist, extends the Olympic narrative through campaigns and community initiatives tied to health, routine and active living.
“I’m excited to team up with P&G – from Pantene and Olay to Oral-B and Gillette Venus, their products are staples in so many Kiwi homes and are truly loved by families across the country,” Carrington said. “I’m looking forward to working together to inspire Kiwis to live healthy, active lives and to give back to our communities.”
Across each cycle, the same elements return. Athlete partnerships, on-ground presence and product integration, scaled across markets and repeated from one Games to the next.
Penfolds x Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix 2026
A heritage brand finding new audiences through speed, spectacle and scale.
In March 2026, at Albert Park, Penfolds stepped into the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix as an event supporter. In a pivot from its five-year tenure with the Melbourne Cup carnival, Penfolds’ partnership with F1 aligns one of Australia’s most recognisable wine houses with one of its most visible global sporting stages.
The partnership aligns with the 75th anniversary of Grange, the flagship wine whose multiple 100-point scores have cemented Penfolds’ global standing. Across the four-day event, the brand moves through the upper tier of the experience with premium hospitality venues, including the American Express Lounge, carrying a curated restaurant pairing and a dedicated Grange tasting program. This cleverly places the wine directly in front of a high-value, international audience.
At the centre is the “Penfolds Grange Experience”, a hosted tasting led by a Penfolds ambassador, designed to articulate the wine’s history, craft and staying power within a setting defined by speed and spectacle.
“The Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix offers an extraordinary platform to share our wines, celebrate 75 years of Grange, and mark moments with wine lovers and F1 fans in Australia and those visiting from around the globe,” Penfolds chief marketing officer Kristy Keyte said.
Extending beyond the VIP tier, a selection from the Treasury Wine Estates Victorian portfolio was also available across select hospitality areas, widening the brand’s footprint across the circuit.
A Grand Prix official spoke about what the celebrated wine label would add to the event. “Penfolds will help us deliver a world-class hospitality experience by showcasing their exceptional wines at the Formula 1 Qatar Airways Australian Grand Prix 2026,” Australian Grand Prix chief commercial officer Emma Pinwill lauded.
“Penfolds’ presence will contribute to an elevated and memorable experience for guests.”
At Albert Park, the alignment is precise. A legacy wine, a global stage, and an audience already in motion.
XXXX x Queensland Rugby League: State of Origin
From community clubs to the state’s biggest sporting stage.
XXXX is the official beer partner of the QLD Maroons, running across decades and continuing through this year. The partnership spans grassroots competitions, community clubs and the State of Origin arena where it reaches its most visible point.
The brew brand, owned by global beverage juggernaut Lion, operates across the full Queensland Rugby League pathway, from local grounds through to the Maroons. That reach places the brand inside a system that produces the extravaganza, rather than just at a peak. Community competitions carry the same insignia as Origin night, closing the distance between the two.
The effect builds over time. Queensland Rugby League has described XXXX as one of its longest-standing partners and earlier this year the pair celebrated what they claimed to be “decades of mateship”.
“XXXX has been part of Queensland Rugby League for generations. Their support stretches from community footy right through to the Maroons, and that’s something we’re incredibly proud of,” Queensland Rugby League CEO Ben Ikin said.
On Origin night, the association sharpens and during the lead-up, it is already there at local clubs, regional competitions, the routines that sit underneath the headline fixture – the brand holding its place across all.
Stone & Wood x World Surf League
An activation strategy designed around shared experiences.
From 2025, Stone & Wood entered a national partnership with the World Surf League, extending its presence across the Australian leg of the tour.
The footprint follows the season with championship tour stops at Bells Beach, Snapper Rocks and Margaret River; the challenger series in Newcastle; and the Longboard Tour at Bells. At each, the brand sits close to the break, integrated into the event environment, rather than orbiting it.
The “Stone & Wood Golden Hour” runs as a sundowner session across events, blending a specialty heat with live music, surf films and conversations that pull athletes and fans into the same space. The format shifts with the coastline, but the intent absolutely holds.
“Coming from Byron Bay, Stone & Wood and surfing have always gone hand in hand. We’ve been part of the local surfing community from the outset and partnering with the WSL gives us the opportunity to take that natural connection to the beach lifestyle to coastal communities right across the country,” said Stone & Wood head of strategy & creative, Paul Tansley.
The partnership extends into broadcast through segments such as the ‘Post Show’ and ‘Slow-Mo’, alongside a content series that moves inside the competitor areas and event village.
“They’re a brand that was born at the beach and lives and breathes the coastal lifestyle,” WSL APAC President Andrew Stark said. “We look forward to seeing Stone & Wood bring this partnership to life at each of our events around Australia by creating moments and places where we can come together through surfing.”
Originally published in the July edition of Inside FMCG.
Further reading: FMCG’s biggest sponsorships: Maybelline, Mecca, Carlton Draught and more
