MAM
CVL Srinivas exits WPP India, ending a nine-year power run
MUMBAI: CVL Srinivas will retire as WPP India’s country manager on ’31 March, 2026, bringing down the curtain on a nine-year stretch that reshaped the group’s heft in the country’s bruising advertising market.
Srinivas took the top India job in 2017, succeeding Ranjan Kapur, after joining WPP in 2013 as chief executive of South Asia’s GroupM, now WPP Media. WPP said the succession process has been in motion for more than 15 months, with his successor set to be named in the coming weeks.
Speaking earlier on the group’s recent merger-driven reshuffle, Srinivas said the spotlight on WPP had only sharpened. Despite its scale, he argued, the network continues to work “pretty seamlessly across our agencies”, even as rivals circle for share.
Srinivas, who had indicated his wish to step down at 60, leaves behind a career that tracks the rise of modern media buying in India. He began at J W Thompson Worldwide as media lead for Unilever’s foods and personal care business at HTA Fulcrum, before stints as COO at Madison World, chief executive of Maxus Asia Pacific and chairman of Starcom Mediavest Group India. He also ran GroupM South Asia until 2018.
His departure opens up one of the most closely watched corner offices in Indian advertising, as WPP seeks to keep its edge in a market where global scale and local muscle are increasingly colliding.
MAM
Lego brings Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappé, Vinicius together
Campaign clocks 314 million views ahead of FIFA World Cup 2026 buzz.
MUMBAI: Four legends, one frame and not a single tackle in sight. Lego has pulled off a crossover few thought possible, uniting Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior in a single campaign ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026 only this time, they’re building dreams brick by brick.
Titled “Everyone wants a piece”, the campaign features the quartet assembling a Lego version of the World Cup trophy, before placing miniature versions of themselves atop it, a playful nod to football’s ultimate prize. Shared widely across social media, the ad carries a pointed disclaimer: it is not AI-generated, a subtle but telling signal in an era where even reality is often questioned.
The numbers tell their own story. The campaign has already crossed 314 million views on Instagram across the players’ accounts, with fans hailing it as a rare, almost nostalgic moment particularly for the reunion of Messi and Ronaldo, whose last shared campaign ahead of the 2022 World Cup became one of the platform’s most-liked posts.
Beyond the film, Lego is extending the play with exclusive, player-themed sets tied to each of the four stars, part of a broader football-led programme designed to ride the global momentum building towards 2026. The idea, as echoed by the players themselves, leans into the parallels between football and play experimentation, creativity, failure, and triumph.
Messi described the sets as a way to bring on-pitch moments into an imaginative, hands-on world, while Ronaldo called the transformation into a Lego figure a rare honour, blending sport with storytelling. Vinícius, meanwhile, struck a more personal note, recalling childhood moments of building with Lego and framing creativity as a universal language that transcends borders.
The timing is no accident. With the 2026 World Cup set to run from June 11 to July 19 across the United States, Canada and Mexico, and featuring an expanded 48-team format, global anticipation is already building. Argentina, led by Messi, will enter as defending champions, adding another layer of intrigue.
For Lego, the campaign does more than celebrate football, it taps into its mythology. Because when icons become figurines and rivalries turn into play, the beautiful game finds a new kind of pitch. one built, quite literally, by hand.
