The Glass Sipper

As a continuation of its “Fan Work is Thirsty Work” platform, Coca-Cola is celebrating the fans behind the tournament’s Cinderella stories — the students, alumni and supporters who power their teams through every bracket-busting moment.
The Coca-Cola Glass Sipper: Inspired by Coca-Cola’s iconic contour bottle and basketball’s ties to sneaker culture, the Coca-Cola Glass Sipper is a custom size 11 basketball sneaker-shaped cup built to celebrate the team and fan base whose tournament journey most defies expectations. Defined by upsets and staying power, the Coca-Cola Glass Sipper is not just given, rather it is earned, and will be bestowed to the team and fan base whose tournament journey defies expectations. The race begins as the brackets tip off, and one Coca-Cola Glass Sipper will celebrate a team from each tournament.
Fan-First Creative: Rather than treating March Madness as a single fan experience, Coca-Cola’s campaign highlights the traditions, chants and “If You Know You Know” moments that define each school community. The refreshed creative builds on Coca-Cola’s “Fight Song” TV spot, spotlighting hyper-local fan rituals and school pride across the tournament.

THE CAMPAIGN
Rooted in the belief that “Fan Work is Thirsty Work,” Coca-Cola is celebrating the passion and dedication of college basketball fans by highlighting the unique rituals and “If You Know You Know” moments that define each Coca-Cola school community across campaign touchpoints, including TVC, OOH, media partnerships and content. By spotlighting real traditions, rituals and hyper-local details from individual school communities, the campaign reflects how fans actually experience March Madness. It moves beyond a generic tournament narrative to celebrate what makes each fan base distinct.
TVC: Building on the existing “Fight Song” March Madness TV creative, Coca-Cola’s refreshed 2026 film continues the “Fan Work is Thirsty Work” story by highlighting the unique traditions, rituals and authentic details that define different Coca-Cola NCAA partner schools. The TVC spot will run through the National Championship game on Monday, April 6 on CBS, TBS, TNT, TRU, ESPN, ABC and across social and digital.
OOH: New for 2026, Coca-Cola will run fan-targeted OOH placements in March Madness host cities throughout the tournament, pairing campaign messaging with hyper-relevant, customizable creative across digital out-of-home.
Broadcast: Coca-Cola will be showing up inside the moments that matter through contextual in-game messaging with Lower Thirds customized by March Madness round.