TLDR
Clemenger BBDO's Lifeblood Blood Supply campaign for Australian Red Cross Lifeblood took the Grand Prix and two category awards at the 27th Media Federation of Australia Awards in Sydney. Peter Horgan entered the MFA Hall of Fame after a decade as board chair. Special and Pembleton each won Yellow Pencils at D&AD 2026.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
The winning work
Clemenger BBDO's Lifeblood Blood Supply campaign for Australian Red Cross Lifeblood won the Grand Prix, Best Integrated Campaign and Best Use of Outdoor at the 27th Media Federation of Australia (MFA) Awards, held in Sydney on 24 September 2026.[1]
The Grand Prix is the MFA's highest honour, judged on data-led activation, integrated planning and measurable results across an eligibility window running from 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2026.[1]
Other major winners
EssenceMediacom took the Brand Impact award for Google's 'AI Finds its Voice' campaign, and Dentsu won both the ESG Campaign and Partnership awards for Medibank's 'Family Roast'.[1]
Lauren Thornborough and Louise Wilson won the MFA Industry Contribution Award for co-founding The Village, an advocacy association for parents and parents-to-be working in the media industry.[1]
Peter Horgan's Hall of Fame induction
Peter Horgan was inducted into the MFA Hall of Fame at the same ceremony, recognising his decade as board chair and his leadership across agencies including OMD and Omnicom.[1]
Madden said that under Horgan's leadership, the MFA tackled industry reputation wobbles, rebuilt combative relationships with client bodies, championed initiatives to develop future leaders and helped unite an industry that wasn't always great at moving in the same direction.[1]
Australian agencies at D&AD 2026
The MFA Awards sit inside a broader 2026 awards season in which Australian agencies have registered wins at the global level. Special's US arm won a D&AD Yellow Pencil in the Digital Marketing category for 'Build Your Own Super Bowl Commercial', made for Uber Eats.[2] Pembleton separately earned a Yellow Pencil in New Brand Identity and a Graphite Pencil in Packaging Design, both for the 'Evil Ray' sun-cream brand.[3]
D&AD President Lisa Smith said the field reflected genuine creative ambition, with teams pushing into new territory across disciplines, from storytelling and traditional craft to emerging technologies and new forms of expression.[5] D&AD awarded 573 pencils across 46 categories at its 2026 show, drawing entries from a record 89 countries.[5]
SOURCES & CITATIONS
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
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Xaviery Malinao writes for Prompt the Market on how brands and agencies are adapting to answer engines, drawing on Bushnote's work with clients across search, AI search and content.
