Heineken® 0.0 Launches a New Globally Integrated Marketing Campaign to Start Dry January 2025 with Zero Judgement

Heineken®’s brand new ‘0.0 Reasons Needed’ campaign launching this January has been designed to send a clear message: if someone goes dry, it doesn’t matter why – it’s their choice.

Whilst social pressures around moderation still exist, Heineken® hopes to shatter the stigma associated with choosing not to drink alcohol, defending people’s right to make judgement-free choices. Through the new ‘0.0 Reasons Needed’ campaign, the brand aims to uplift those who simply want to enjoy a Heineken® 0.0 for its great taste, ensuring everyone is empowered to embrace moderation – if they want to. The series of TVCs poke fun at some of the stereotypes associated with choosing not to drink alcohol, such as assuming someone must be the designated driver, or they’re on a health kick.

Regardless of what people might assume when they see you enjoying a Heineken 0.0, there’s no special reason behind it—just the great taste. The TV commercials, directed by Hanna Maria Hendrich and filmed in Barcelona, will be airing globally in January 2025.

The campaign taps into the wider cultural point that people’s drinking habits are changing, and questions whether we need abstinence months like ‘Dry January’ and ‘Sober October’ in the diary to choose non-alcoholic options. Along with the campaign TVCs, Heineken® 0.0 is launching new research from University of Oxford Professor Charles Spence to show that despite the acceptability of low and non-alcoholic drinks being at a high, choosing one can still raise eyebrows. 

Nabil Nasser, Global Head of Heineken® Brand says, “The launch of Heineken® 0.0 in 2017 revolutionised the non-alcoholic space. A premium, high-quality brand offering a 0.0 has helped make moderation cool. It’s exciting to see this new research uncover a growing social acceptance of non-alcoholic drinks; not just accepted, but also something people see as a cool and confident choice. That said, you can see there is still work to be done with the research spotlighting low and no alcohol judgement still exists, so we need to be dynamic and inventive around how we tackle these stereotypes. We’re proud of our great tasting Heineken® 0.0 and its role in helping to remove the stigmas in this space, so people can enjoy it without being judged. Perhaps someone is the designated driver, or maybe they just really fancy a refreshing Heineken® 0.0 – our latest campaign shows the bottom line is, you don’t need a special reason to go alcohol-free.”

Bruno Bertelli, Global CEO LePub, CCO Publicis Worldwide, added: “This campaign challenges the prejudices around the consumption of alcohol-free beer. Heineken 0.0 isn’t just an alternative—its great taste seamlessly fits into real life’s moments. Good flavour speaks for itself, without the need for a special reason.”

Heineken®’s study – which surveyed 11,842 adults across five developed non-alcohol beer markets UK, USA, Spain, Japan (over the legal drinking age up to 75), and Brazil (18 – 65) found that Gen-Z (aged 18 to 26 years old) are facing social pressures around alcohol consumption the most.

The survey found 21% of Gen Z in these five markets have been called-out about their choice of a non-alcoholic drink and say they have concealed drinking low or non-alcoholic drinks because of social pressures. The report also found that more than one-third have felt pressure to drink alcohol in some social situations.

Gen Z men over the legal drinking age are amongst the most likely to feel choosing an alcohol-free drink could be a social faux pas. 38% of men in this age group say they would be willing to drink no or low-alcohol versions of alcoholic drinks, but only if their friends do too. If and when Gen Z men choose to drink a low or no-alcohol version of alcoholic drinks, they feel they need to explain and justify their choice of drink and even feel like “outsiders” for doing so (29%). Heineken® has created its latest campaign to tackle these stigmas, supporting people’s right to make judgement-free choices.

Charles Spence, Professor of Experimental Psychology at the University of Oxford, explains: “Our study has uncovered some fascinating insights into evolving societal attitudes towards alcohol consumption. For many, alcohol is no longer the default in social situations – we’re seeing a shift towards more mindful consumption. Yet, in cultures where drinking alcohol is still predominantly viewed as the norm, opting out can be stigmatised. This is particularly true for Gen Zers and millennials. For generations, alcohol has played a central role in the way humans socialise, therefore dominant assumptions and stereotypes surrounding our drinking habits remain deeply ingrained in society.”

Not everyone is concerned with judgement of their drinking choices. In fact, we’re in the early stages of acceptance becoming the new normal. The study found a fifth of drinkers now say they moderate between alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages at evening social gatherings with friends or family.

Plenty of people feel secure in their balanced lifestyle – regardless of what others might think of them – and many people admire those who are sober or choose to drink in moderation. More participants acknowledge non-alcoholic drinkers as “cool” (9%) and “respectable” (25%) rather than “uncool” (4%) or “boring” (6%). It is also seen as the confident choice for “dry dating”, with over a third (35%) of those who drink low or no alcohol drinks choosing this as their beverage when on an evening date.

These early signs from non-alcoholic beer leading markets point to the dawn of a new, post-sober curious era.

Heineken 0.0 2025 – CREDIT LIST

Sr. Director Global Heineken Brand: Nabil Nasser  

Global Communications and Strategy Director: Daniela Iebba

Global Communication Manager: Friederike Offermanns

Global Digital Director: Rob van Griensven 

Head of Global Digital Advertising:  Bram Reukers 

Global PR Lead: Jonathan O’Lone

Global Commercial Development manager: Youssef AbouElKhair

​​LePub

Global CEO LePub, CCO Publicis Worldwide: Bruno Bertelli  

Global Chief Creative Officer: Cristiana Boccassini

Chief Creative Officer: Milos Obradovic

Creative Director: Clara Prior-knock

Creative Director: Andreas Hoff

Associate Creative Director: Santi Urso

Associate Creative Director: Khlauss Feldhaus

Junior Digital Creative: Nikolay Malchev

Junior Digital Creative: Alejandro Gutierrez

Chief Strategy Officer: Sol Ghafoor

Groupe Strategy Director: James Moore

Junior Strategist: Thiago Jorge

Head of Culture & Data: Zoe Lazarus

Global Data Strategy Director: Ilko Petkov

Senior Data Strategist: Tami Garcìa 

Ethnography/ Data Analyst: Hanna Janasik

Data Translator: Tumay Mavi

Chief Production Officer: Francesca Zazzera 

Producer: Florin Marica

Post producer: Sabrina SanFratello

Print producer: Giorgia Bellondi

Production & Print manager: Tina Paolella, Daniela Inglieri

Global Client Service Director: Shirine Aoun

Group Account Director: Madalina Marica

Senior Brand Manager: David Owen

Account Director: Rossana de Rosa

Account Supervisor: Tinatin Prangishvili

Junior Accounts: Elina Issakova, Clara Boggia

Production

Production Company: Anorak

Director: Hanna Maria Heidrich

Executive Producer: Tobias Steinhauser

Producer: Steffen Leiser

Director of photography: André Chemetoff

Stylist: Lucia Lopez

Production Designer: Isabel Peinado Rodriguez

Editor director’s cut: Benjamin Entrup

Post production Company: Prodigious Italy

Colorist: Company 3 – Jean Clement

Editor: Antonio Civilini – Enrico Munarini

Music: 

Music supervision & licensing: Sizzer

Music supervisor: Richard Aardenburg

Licensing: Veronika Muravskaia

Title: Funky Fever 

Artist: Alan Morehouse and His Bond Street Brigade

Written by: Alan Moorhouse

Label: Warner Music UK

courtesy of PRS for Music, under license from MCPS

Production key visuals

Production company: Noruwei

Photographer & Director: Chelsea Kyle

DOP: Jasper de Kloet

Drinks SFX: Erik Voors

Executive Producer: Nicola Morino

Producer: Harmony Boda

Line Producer: Korinna Bognár

Post Production: Mattia Giani

Production Digital

Production Company: Boomerang Agency, part of Publicis Groupe

Virtual Production Studio: Lukkien

Director: Martín Rietti

DOP: Marcus Autelli

Head of Production: Han Schuurman

Senior Producers: Laura Thrower & Thom Specht

Producer: Juul van Grinsven

Business Lead Amplify: Sebastiaan Poublon

Executive Digital Producer: Vic Krens
Lead Digital Producer: Nina Vaisman

Digital Content Lead: Daria Iakovenko
Data & Quality Control Lead: Renske de Vlieg

VFX Supervisor: Mike Duistermaat

Post Producers: Lina Joukhadar & Adam Crick 

Offline/Online Editor: Ane Zabala

Motion Designer: Lenisio Jardim

Compositor: Ilia Kole

Catapult

SVP, Account Director: Bill Flanagan

Account Director: Amanda Torres Erickson
Senior Strategy Director: Stacy Newman

Account Planner: Rileigh Boyd

Group Creative Director: Lorraine Purcell

Associate Creative Director: Kyle Dunne

Senior Art Director: Mike Gmitter
Art Director: Rachel Sweet

Art Director: Jess VandeLoo

Dentsu RedStar

Global Client Lead: Victoria Gregory

Global Strategy Partner: Simon Bielby

Global Partnerships Manager: Julie Le Houezec

Amplify Planning Director: Marie Boucat
Global Account Director: Milo Meulenkamp

Edelman – PR

Brand Managing Director: Suzy Socker

Director: Kate Gard

Associate Director: Harry Zelenka Martin

Group Programme Director: Asher Jacobson

Account Director: Saskia Butler-Tempest

Senior Account Manager: Sébastien-Nicolas Chiffrin

Senior Account Executive: Yahia Tamer

Account Executive: Carien van Rietschoten

Billion Dollar Boy – Creators 

Executive Creative Director, Global: Alex Williamson

Associate Creative Director: Henry Crisp 

Junior Creative: Raychel Graham 

Senior Strategist: George Wells 

Group Account Director: Sami Westwood 

Account Director: James Silverstone

Account Manager: Anton Carter

Account Manager: Tom Nash

Operations Manager: Jen Perez

Source: Heineken

  Bruno Bertelli, Edelman, Heineken, Heineken® 0.0, Le Pub, Nabil Nasser