Alcohol & social networks — Alcohol brands storming social media

.To decipher how alcohol brands use social media and influencers to promote their products, particularly to young people. Based on five years of observation, this report describes sponsored advertisements, audience targeting, and competitions that blend commercial promotion with everyday content. It provides prevention professionals with concrete examples to inform their awareness-raising actions and their reflections on digital environments. It also sheds light on legal responses and the responsibilities of brands, agencies, and influencers, while presenting Addictions France's advocacy for a ban on alcohol advertising on the internet.

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1️⃣ SUMMARY

This report is the third published as part of the Addiction Observatory France, following those from September 2024 and December 2025 (p. 3). Over five years of observation, it reports on 17 848 pieces of content promoting alcohol and 1 073 identified brands on social media (p. 4). It cites a study by the OFDT published in April 2026: 78% of minors and 91% of young adults report having been exposed to alcohol marketing in the previous month; the introduction places this exposure online or in audiovisual media, and not solely on social media (p. 3). The first part analyses sponsored content on Meta, targeting, interstitial and intrusive formats as well as several judicial decisions (p. 5-12). The second part focuses on collaborations with influencers and on the search for responsibilities of brands and intermediaries (p. 13-17). The conclusion calls for a ban on all alcohol advertising on internet, particularly on social media (p. 18). The report does not explicitly designate its readership; however, the protection of young people is a central issue.

2️⃣ WHAT YOU NEED TO REMEMBER

1️⃣ Study of Meta's advertising libraries (finding). Method: 20 brands compared, 54 advertisements from 3 brands analysed, 4 brands followed for three weeks; the study is presented as non-exhaustive (p. 6). The observed brands sponsor an average of 210 pieces of content per year, Brew Dog 1 550 (p. 6-7) ; a campaign reaches an average of nearly 470,000 people (p. 7).

2️⃣ Content and targeting (finding and estimation of the association). Of 54 contents from Label 5, Bavaria 8.6 and Jägermeister, Addictions France estimates that 52% exceed the scope of the Evin law (p. 9). 72 % of Jägermeister advertisements specifically target 18-25 year olds; almost one in five advertisements (18%) relies on seasonality (p. 9).

3️⃣ Influencers (observation). In five years, 251 brands have engaged in commercial collaborations with influencers; 1,198 contents observed, of which 46% are stories (p. 13). The number of likes could only be recorded for 416 contents, which total nearly 1.6 million likes (p. 14).

3️⃣ TO ACT

1️⃣ Action requested by the document (case 1). Preparation for an announced action. Addictions France indicates it plans to launch very soon legal actions against the brands Label 5 and Poliakov regarding alcohol advertisements that it considers intrusive and interstitial on Meta (p. 10). The report presents these steps as forthcoming and does not provide information on their actual engagement or outcome. Suggestion Health Practices: monitor their potential launch and then any decisions made, distinguishing the association's arguments from the qualifications retained by the jurisdictions.

2️⃣ Existing tool cited (case 2). The advertising libraries of major platforms archive the advertisements of an advertiser; their availability is a requirement of the European regulation on digital services (DSA), applicable since 25 August 2023 (p. 6). The document highlights the limitations of the tool (p. 6). Suggestion Health Practices: use it to observe the advertisements of a brand, keeping these limitations in mind.

3️⃣ Preparation for an announced action (case 3). Addictions France plans to soon launch legal actions against the brands Label 5 and Poliakov regarding intrusive and interstitial advertisements on Meta (p. 10). Status: planned, not engaged as of the date of the document. Health Practices Suggestion: monitor the outcome of these proceedings before drawing legal conclusions.

4️⃣ 3 PRACTICAL QUESTIONS

1️⃣ What is an “interstitial” or “intrusive” content? Interstitial: content that imposes itself on the user by inserting itself into their feed, between two pieces of content. Intrusive: content that imposes itself without being solicited, broadcast according to its interests or personal characteristics through targeting. The legislator prohibits them without precisely defining them; the document cites article L. 3323-2 (9°) of the Public Health Code (p. 10).

2️⃣ Does content validated by the brand or by the ARPP protect the influencer? The document does not present it this way: some influencers claim that their content had been validated, and Addictions France believes that it is the influencer who will bear the legal responsibility (p. 16). In the Heineken Silver case, the communication was sanctioned in December 2025, appeal ongoing (p. 15).

3️⃣ What is an “interstitial” or “intrusive” content according to this report? The report describes as interstitial content that imposes itself on the user by inserting itself into their news feed between two pieces of content, and as intrusive unsolicited content broadcast according to their interests or personal characteristics through targeting. It recalls that article L. 3323-2, 9°, of the Public Health Code prohibits intrusive or interstitial forms of advertising for alcohol, without defining them precisely. Addictions France considers that unsolicited content interrupting navigation may fall under these categories, even without full-screen display. These definitions should be presented as those proposed in the report, and not as an already established judicial qualification for all sponsored advertisements (p. 10).

5️⃣ TO GO FURTHER

1️⃣ Blog Health Practices : "Promotion of Alcohol - Social Media, a New Wild West" (fact sheet on the Addictions France report from September 2024) — link. Article referenced in L’Hebdo No. 50 of 16 December 2025 (page consulted and verified on 7 November 2026). Direct access to the article not obtained: link to be checked manually before dissemination.

2️⃣ External resource : Savy M., Lecas F., "Influencers' Publications Normalise Alcoholic Beverages" [interview], La Santé en action, 2026, No. 473, pp. 32-33, Public Health France, published online on 10 June 2026 — link. Page consulted and verified on 7 November 2026. The two authors are affiliated with Addictions France (external source not verified on this point beyond the page): this is a supplement on the approach (monitoring, dialogue, legal recourse), not an independent view.

6️⃣ #️⃣ HASHTAGS

#pratiquesensante #LoiEvin #MarketingAlcohol #AlcoholPrevention #ProtectionOfYouth #Influencers #SocialMedia #AddictionsFrance

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