Marmite is the most English thing a person can pack for a trip abroad. It is also nearly impossible to find in the United States. For the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with England fans boarding long-haul flights for weeks of late-night matches, unfamiliar breakfasts, and the specific emotional turbulence that follows England through every tournament, Marmite and adam&eve\TBWA decided the brand had earned the right to make this moment entirely its own.
The Name Change
For the duration of the World Cup, Marmite temporarily renamed itself WeMite. The rebrand is a single word that carries the brand name, the collective pronoun of a nation that goes to tournaments as a group whether it wants to or not, and the modal verb that sits at the heart of every England supporter’s internal monologue between June and July. We might. WeMite. The new name required no explanation to anyone who has watched England play a knockout match.
The name change extended across special-edition packaging distributed exclusively to travelling fans, produced by The Hub London with photography and retouching by Luke Kirwan at Black Box Studio.
The Jar Sizes
The product mechanic is where the campaign becomes genuinely precise. Three jar sizes were produced, each corresponding to a level of tournament optimism, and each requiring the fan to make a declaration before they pack.
The small jar carries the line “WeMite reach the quarters,” for the pragmatists and those with recent memory. The medium jar reads “WeMite reach the semis,” for the cautiously optimistic. The large jar reads “WeMite go and win it,” for those who believe, who have always believed, and who are packing accordingly.
The logic behind the sizing is functional rather than decorative. The longer England stays in the tournament, the longer the fan is away from home, the more Marmite they will need. A fan who packs the large jar is either the most confident person at the airport or simply the most prepared for heartbreak to take longer than expected.
Darren Beresford and Richard Gayton, Creative Directors at adam&eve\TBWA, described the brief with appropriate bleakness: “It’s a grim thought, all of those travelling fans having to suffer through American breakfasts this summer. WeMite lets them choose the amount of Marmite they’re going to need out there based on how they expect England to do. Whether you love or hate Marmite, no true fan can turn up in the States without the big ‘WeMite go and win it’ jar in their suitcase.”
The Distribution
Jars were made available through Heathrow Express, the non-stop 15-minute service connecting Central London to Heathrow Airport. The placement is operationally precise. Every travelling fan passes through that corridor. It is the last stretch of English infrastructure before the departure gate. Marmite positioned itself at the exact point in the journey where a person transitions from being in England to leaving it, which is exactly when the comfort of the things you love becomes most relevant.
Morgan McAuley, Senior Brand Manager at Marmite, framed the campaign’s emotional argument directly: “Whether fans were packing for the group stages or preparing for England to go all the way, we wanted to make sure they could take a proper taste of home with them. Marmite has always divided opinion, but when you’re thousands of miles from home, there’s nothing quite like the comfort of the things you love.”
Why It Works
WeMite does not attempt to broaden Marmite’s audience. It does the opposite. It goes narrower, specifically to England fans travelling to North America, and deeper, speaking to the precise emotional state of a person who has packed Vegemite in their suitcase for weeks away and is already preparing themselves for the worst while loudly insisting they are not. The campaign works because it describes its audience with accuracy and without flattery, and offers them something that acknowledges exactly who they are.
The modal verb “might” is also the most England word in the language for tournament season. Not will. Not shall. Might. WeMite is not a statement of ambition. It is a statement of character. And that is why it does not need to work any harder than a name change and three jar sizes to say everything it needs to say.
Campaign Name: WeMite
Agency Name: adam&eve\TBWA / PR: W Communications / Packaging Production: The Hub London / Photography: Luke Kirwan, Black Box Studio
Brand Name: Marmite / Unilever
Location: United Kingdom (Heathrow Express distribution; OOH, social)
