Agenda 2026

Pion presents wave two of the most influential brand ranking of 2026. Discover where your brand stands with young people today and what drives brand love vs. spend.

Understand the emotional drivers, spending patterns, and brand behaviours that marketers need to know to stay relevant with the next generation and find out who are the movers and shakers as we head into the second half of the year.

The rules around advertising to young people are evolving quickly. From new restrictions on less healthy food and drink to increasing scrutiny of online harms and influencer marketing, the expectations on brands have never been higher.

But compliance does not have to dampen creativity or brand impact. In fact, getting it right can strengthen storytelling, build trust, and protect long term reputation.

In this session, the Advertising Standards Authority will explore what the changing regulatory landscape means in practice. We will highlight the most common pitfalls across advertising, social media and influencer campaigns, with a particular focus on protecting children and young people online and share practical guidance to help you stay both responsible and effective.

For years, the discourse around young people and news has pointed to the same conclusion: they don't like it. They don't trust it. It's overwhelming. And it’s too depressing.

And while some of that may hold true, we'd like to offer a counterargument: Young people actually love the news. It's just packaged differently.

Today, news is creator-led, niche, and delivered in the form of newsletters, short-form video, and community-driven platforms. Young people are consuming news and information every single day, and not just passively. Whether on TikTok or Substack, they're actively engaging with stories and topics they don't just need to stay informed, but that they're genuinely curious and passionate about.

The question isn't whether young people care about the news. They do. The question is whether the industry is willing to meet them where they are, and build for how they actually consume it. This session brings together voices from across the new media ecosystem to explore what's working, what the future of news looks like, and how brands can not only get involved, but also learn a thing or two.

While many claim Gen Z only lives online, foot traffic in pubs, fast food, and retail is surging for brands that get the "Phygital" experience right. We explore how to use location-based tech and in-store data capture to turn a physical visit into a long-term digital relationship.

Behind every university application is a wider network of influence and support. This session draws on SMRS’s 2025 research with over 650 parents and carers across the UK, exploring how they experience and describe their role in supporting their child’s journey into higher education.

We explore confidence in the system, involvement in decision-making, financial considerations, and the information parents rely on when guiding choices—revealing how support is formed, understood, and delivered in practice.

While it is widely recognised that parents play a significant role in higher education decisions, this research moves beyond influence alone to look at what that role actually looks like on the ground, and where gaps in understanding and communication remain.

Join the discussion as we explore the implications of a journey that is becoming increasingly a shared family process.

Every weekend, millions of young people create, edit, and distribute sports content that never touches your platform, your hashtag, or your campaign.

They're not waiting to consume what brands produce. They're producing their own. And the stuff they're making, raw clips, group chat highlights, 1v1 humiliations - travels further in their world than anything with a media budget behind it.

Veo has captured over 4 million grassroots matches globally. Top Baller has built a global 1v1 format that's attracted Messi, IShowSpeed, and the Bundesliga. Neither of us started as media companies. We became media companies because that's what the audience demanded.

What we've learned challenges the assumptions most youth marketing still operates on:

• They don't want to watch sports. They want to be visible in it.
• A 12-second clip has more status than a 90-minute broadcast.
• "Getting better" is identity. Winning is secondary.
• They'll build a community around a Tuesday night 1v1 faster than a Champions League final.

Top Baller went from a London cage to events with Messi in two years. Players from their tournaments have signed for Preston, Wolves, and PSG. The pathway doesn't look like it used to.

This session is for anyone trying to reach young audiences through sport, and wondering why the old playbook isn't working.

Students don’t engage with universities in isolation, they engage in a crowded feed. This session unpacks where student attention really goes, what content resonates, and how universities can design smarter, student-first strategies that work in youth-driven digital spaces.

Universities invest heavily in media - but are our channel choices aligned with how students actually navigate uncertainty, build trust and make decisions?

Drawing on Media Mapper, our longitudinal research into the sources of media students use across the prospective journey, this panel discussion brings together strategy, research and lived experience to examine whether institutional media strategies truly reflect student behaviour today.

Rather than focusing on individual channels or short‑term performance metrics, the panel will explore how attention translates (or fails to translate) into decision‑making, how trust is built beyond controlled messaging, why formats shape confidence as much as conversion, and how AI is reshaping discovery and choice.

This open conversation with Amii Lanham,  Frederica Healbury and Paul Cernicharo-Terol will challenge assumptions and reflect on what needs to change if media strategies are to support how students really decide, not just how we plan campaigns.

The most effective youth marketing doesn’t just promote brands - it creates real opportunity for young people. In this session we’ll explore how brands can unlock growth by aligning commercial goals with making genuine impact in young people’s lives. We’ll share how access to young audiences, life-stage insight and co-creation can transform marketing into something that drives both measurable business results and meaningful outcomes for young people.

By winter break, a student’s "inner circle" of brands is already set. Success requires speed and precision. Join Pion as we track the Freshers’ timeline step-by-step, revealing the "make-or-break" moments where top brands win loyalty before the window slams shut.

The ultimate "vibe check." Join Pion for an unfiltered Q&A where a panel of students takes the stage to answer your toughest questions. From what’s actually "cringe" to how they really spend their money, this is your chance to bypass the data and get the raw truth directly from the source.

Word on the Curb share their expertise in cultural relevance, helping to bridge the gap between brands and hard-to-reach audiences.

Hear from our panel of marketing chiefs that are tackling this competitive landscape head on. They will share their insights into leading at the speed of culture and preparing their marketing teams for a new generation of youth audiences. 

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Our panel explores how brands like Currys, KFC and Oatly have shifted to fame-first strategies across earned and social media, designing content that feels native to the internet, with an ‘entertain or die’ attitude. We’ll unpack how creative bravery, coherent dissonance and a touch of unhinged can help brands earn attention, build relevance and stay credible with younger audiences.