The awards shortlist for Campaign’s Agency of the Year Middle East 2025 has been announced. Of the 173 entries submitted to the awards, the panel of client-side judges have shortlisted 146 entries, which are now one step closer to lifting coveted trophies at the awards night on 11 December.
With a 13 per cent year-on-year increase in overall shortlisted entries, the awards also witnessed submissions from 68 unique agencies, up 14 compared with the number of agencies who participated in 2024.
This year, Campaign Middle East revealed 37 categories for the awards, including four new categories: Branding Agency of The Year, Holding Company of The Year, CSR Initiative of The Year, and Head of Network.
This year’s Agency of the Year Middle East also introduced four tracks for Head of Agency across Creative, Digital, PR and Media.
The Best Agency – UAE category remains the most highly contested with 14 entries and 8 shortlists.
This 2025 jury, made up of 44 marketing leaders from across the Middle East, noted that shortlisted agencies successfully ticked the all the boxes of financial growth, culture, innovation, storytelling and sustainability.
Held in partnership with Motivate Media Group and Haymarket, the UK-based publishing house that has produced Campaign globally for more than 60 years, the Agency of the Year Middle East Awards are independently audited by MediaSense, ensuring impartiality and transparency.
The awards set the benchmark for regional excellence, celebrating the best agencies and their teams across creative, digital, media, PR, integrated and social media.
The Agency of the Year Middle East 2025 shortlist:
Agency Specialty:
Branding Agency of the Year
- Brand Lounge
- Influence Branding & Digital
- Yellow Branding Consultancy
Creative Agency of The Year
- FP7 McCann MENAT
- IMPACT BBDO
- Leo MEA
- Saatchi & Saatchi Middle East
- TBWA\RAAD
Digital Agency of The Year
- Assembly
- Boopin
- Create. Group
- Horizontal Digital
Events, Experiential and Engagement Agency of the Year
- Imagination
- Lightblue
- MCH Global
- Nativex METAP
- Spiro
- The Hanging House Experiential Events
Holding Company of the Year
- MCN MENAT
- Publicis Groupe Middle East & Turkey
Integrated Marketing Agency of the Year
- Boopin
- Cicero and Bernay
- Means Design
- NEXA
- Publicis Groupe Middle East & Turkey
- Quill Communications
Media Agency of the Year
- Boopin
- Initiative
- Magna Global
- OMD MENA
- Starcom Middle East
Performance Marketing Agency of the Year
- Boopin
- Fusion Five Advertising
- Home of Performance
- Keyade (WPP Media)
- Magna Global
- Performics – Publicis Groupe Middle East
PR/Communications Agency of the Year
- Brazen MENA
- Cicero and Bernay
- Current Global MENAT
- Gambit Communications
- HAVAS Red Middle East
- MSL Group Middle East
- The Romans
- Ruder Finn Atteline
Production House of the Year
- electriclime°
- LPS
- Prodigious Middle East
Social Media Agency of The Year
- indaHash
- McCann Content Studios MENAT
- Netizency
- SOCIALEYEZ
Independent Agency:
Independent Creative Agency of the Year
- Liwa Content Driven
- LPS
- Means Design
- Mumkin Marketing Management
- tactical.
- The Hanging House Experiential Events
Independent Media Agency of the Year
- Boopin
- Fusion Five Advertising
Independent PR Agency of the Year
- Brazen MENA
- Gambit Communications
- Identity
- Katch International
- Maison Ellyse
- Qraft Qommunications
- The Romans
Start Up/New Agency of the Year
- Enigma
- Fosfor Studio
- Publsh
- The Romans
- The Small Big Idea
- WE ON IT
Geography Categories:
Best Agency – Egypt
- FP7 McCann Egypt
- IMPACT BBDO Cairo
- OMD Egypt
- Universal Media Egypt
Best Agency – Iraq
- Brodmann
- Sagerlabs
Best Agency – Jordan
To be announced on awards night
Best Agency – Lebanon
To be announced on awards night
Best Agency – Oman
- Identity
- Kenshō Mindful Communications
Best Agency – Qatar
- BLJ Worldwide
- FP7 McCann Doha
- OMD Qatar
Best Agency – Saudi Arabia
- Starcom KSA
- UM KSA
Best Agency – UAE
- Cicero and Bernay
- Create. Group
- FP7 McCann UAE
- Gambit Communications
- The Hanging House Experiential Events
- Saatchi & Saatchi UAE
- TBWA\RAAD
- UM UAE
People and Teams:
Account Person of the Year
- Alexandra Richards, Associate Account Director – Gambit Communications
- Mahmoud Jaber, Business Director – Leo MEA
- Hossam Sherif, Business Unit Director – OMD UAE
- Lauren Abrahamian, Senior Manager – Publicis Groupe ME
- Dima Zaytoun, Business Lead – Starcom Middle East
Arabic Copywriter of the Year
- Darin Shubair, Director of Arabic Content – Cicero and Bernay
- Manar Munjed, Arabic Copywriter and Associate Creative Director – FP7 McCann UAE
- Mouhannad Jarrouj, Senior Copywriter – Arabic – Leo Dubai
- AlWaleed AlSlamah, Senior Creative Copywriter – Onsor Mosha
- Khaled Amairy, Senior Copywriter – Arabic – Saatchi & Saatchi ME
Best Place to Work in 2025
- Fusion Five Advertising
- The Hanging House Experiential Events
- MCN MENAT
- Publicis Groupe Middle East & Turkey
- TBWA\RAAD
Corporate Communications and Marketing Person or Team of the Year
- MarComms Team – MCN MENAT
- Corporate Communications Team – Publicis Groupe Middle East
- Romy Abdelnour, Head of Communications – TBWA\RAAD
Creative Leader of the Year
- Federico Fanti, Regional Chief Creative Officer MENAT – FP7 McCann
- Ali Rez, Chief Creative Officer – IMPACT BBDO Group
- Ihab Nassar, Creative Director – Means Design
- Sebastien Boutebel, Chief Creative Officer – Saatchi & Saatchi Middle East
CSR Initiative of the Year
- MENA ESG Report – Cicero and Bernay
- IMPACT BBDO
Head of Agency – Creative
- Anam Ahmad, Founder & Chief Creative Officer – The Hanging House Experiential Events
- Ghassan Kassabji, CEO – IMPACT BBDO Dubai
- Dorothee Anjos, CEO and General Manager – Multilem Middle East Events
- Nathalie Gevresse, Chief Executive Officer – Publicis Communications UAE
- Reda Raad, Group CEO – TBWA\RAAD
Head of Agency – Digital
To be announced on awards night
Head of Agency – PR
- Tariq Al Sharabi, Managing Director – Cicero and Bernay
- Louise Jacobson, Managing Partner – Brazen MENA
- Nikita Phulwani, CEO & Founder – Mumkin Marketing Management
Head of Network
- Dani Richa, Group Chairman & CEO – IMPACT BBDO
- Bassel Kakish, Group Chief Executive Officer – Publicis Groupe Middle East & Turkey
New Business Development Team or Person of the Year
To be announced on awards night
Outstanding Women in Advertising or Media
- Nayaab Rais, Executive Creative Director – FP7 McCann UAE
- Ghida Ismail, Business Director – Fusion5
- Sidra Fareed, Junior Strategist – Imagination
- Nada Abisaleh, Business Lead – Leo
- Lama Accary Bibi, Managing Director – Means Design
Strategic Planning Team or Person of the Year
- Catherine Bannister, Chief Strategy Officer – TBWA\RAAD
- Sebastian Roland, Head of Strategic Planning – IMPACT BBDO
- Taima Al Farouqi, Director of Strategy – Cicero and Bernay
- The Strategy Garage – Publicis Groupe Middle East & Turkey
- Strategic Planning Team – SOCIALEYEZ
Talent Management Individual or Team of the Year
- Ingrid Dsouza, Head of People and Culture – Team Red Dot
- People & Talent Team – MCN MENAT
- Talent Team – TBWA\RAAD
View the shortlist on the Agency of The Year Middle East website here.
