The fourth edition of Advertising Week Europe brought thousands together in London to join in conversation about the most topical, important issues and trends facing the modern industry. Among the over 200 conversations that took the stage throughout the week, some caused more buzz than others. With so many industry topics wrapped into the program, some more tightly bound by difference of opinion and perspective than the rest, it would seem inevitable to avoid some degree of controversy when exploring topics as complicated as Brexit, for example.
That certainly was the case for Formula One’s Bernie Ecclestone and WWP’s Sir Martin Sorrell during a two-on-one panel, “The Brexit,” in which the two dove into topics ranging from the United Kingdom choosing to leave the European Union, to the role women play within the Formula One brand. After a whirlwind of controversial assertions, such as that immigrants had not made a significant contribution to the United Kingdom and that Vladimir Putin “should be running Europe,” Advertising Week attendees took to social media to share their thoughts on his comments.
The flurry of social media buzz quickly led to Ecclestone’s trending on Twitter and becoming one of the most talked about moments of the Advertising Week Europe event. Ecclestone’s words also caught the attention of major media outlets covering the Europe event, including Business Insider, The Drum, BBC and more.
Sorrell remained fairly distant from Ecclestone’s provocative assertions, maintaining that business would likely take a hit if the UK decided to leave the EU, pointing out that clients of his firms who would possibly lose their jobs, too.
To watch Sorrell and Ecclestone discuss Brexit, Formula One and more, watch the Advertising Week Europe 2016 replay here.
