Thierry Reboul the man behind the Olympic ceremonies: “No plan B for me”
24/12/2025
It all began with a phone call in which Thierry Reboul was asked to take on the role of Creative Director for the Olympic Games in Paris.
The request was immediately followed by the condition that, if he accepted, he would have to sell his company.
The year was 2018. Reboul was the owner of Ubi Bene, a successful marketing and communication agency in Paris, renowned for winning national and international awards for groundbreaking events and activations.
Fans of the industry may remember campaigns like ‘Le Smash’ for Perrier at the Eiffel Tower, Tony Parker’s jersey displayed on the Statue of Liberty in the French capital, or the ‘All-in or Nothing’ campaign for Adidas, where the French national football team’s bus was theatrically destroyed in front of the global press to erase the shame of their refusal to play. Each campaign was a perfect blend of culture, commerce, and sport, all receiving massive media attention.
One and a half billion viewers
I met Thierry in Rome, on the rooftop terrace of his hotel during the BEA World Festival 2024, the international festival for events and live communication. The next day, I had the privilege of officially interviewing him on behalf of 27Names; the platform for Europe’s best independent live communication agencies together with Salvatore Sagone, president and founder of the Bea World Festival. This interview would take place in a hall filled with a few hundred event professionals from around the world.
That evening, we got to know each other over food and drinks. Naturally, I was eager to hear the personal story behind the event that we, along with 1,5 billion (!) others, had watched on television.
As the Executive Director of Creative Branding and Ceremonies, Reboul was responsible for the opening and closing ceremonies of both the Olympic and Paralympic Games, as well as the international Torch Relay. He also held the ultimate creative responsibility for branding and design. Over six years, his team grew to a staggering 20,000 employees, delivering an opening ceremony unlike anything seen in previous Summer Games.
The city as the stage
How did you feel the morning after receiving that life-changing phone call and agreeing to take on the role? “Honestly? I felt great. From the very first moment, I knew; we’re going to do things differently. We’re going to take the ceremony outdoors, into the city, and make Paris the stage for the opening. Not everyone immediately embraced the idea - especially the authorities, who needed convincing. But I wouldn’t have done it any other way. It was this or nothing. For me, there was no lan B.”
“In hindsight, that might be the most important thing we did: sticking to our dream. That’s why we didn’t have a plan B - because if you have one, that’s the plan you’ll end up following.”
A life’s work
I picked up the bottle of wine on the table and poured a glass of red. Reboul tasted it, glanced at the label, and noticed it was Italian. The wine list offered no French options. “Well, I guess we’ll just have to make do,” he said with a smile. I couldn’t help laughing.
Thierry Reboul is a proud Frenchman, and the world could see that in the program he presented on 26th of July. For this, he first approached director Thomas Jolly, known as the artistic director of the Piccola Familia theater company in Rouen, which he founded in 2006. Together, they set out to create what can only be described as their life’s work.
Everyone who watched the ceremony on that rainy July day could feel it: nothing was random. Every theatrical scene carried deeper meaning, symbolic significance, and told the story of modern France - referencing its past and giving a shout-out to its future. From the locations to the choreography, the performers (both singers and dancers), and the design - every element radiated Paris and conveyed a delicate balance of old and new France.
But wasn’t it a huge risk to hold such a monumental event on and around the Seine? “Of course, it was a risk, but historically, this specific date had the lowest chance of rain in the past hundred years. And even with the rain, people stayed along the six-kilometer route because they knew they were part of a historic moment. Later, they’d be able to say, ‘I was there’.”
“Did you know Céline Dion was the first artist to say, ‘We’re going to do this- rain or shine’? Once she committed, the rest naturally followed.” But Céline, given her fragile health, was a risk factor herself, wasn’t she?
“True, but even here, no plan B. Céline simply had to sing Hymne à l’amour by Édith Piaf, which, for many, is the unofficial national anthem of France. Through her performance, we connected everyone to the soul of France and united Paris with the world.”
“It was incredible to see how, every evening after the opening, tens of thousands of people gathered at the Jardin des Tuileries to photograph the Olympic flame beneath the balloon. Rarely have the people of Paris been so welcoming,” Reboul said, smiling as if acknowledging the famously ‘cold’ Parisian character.
Patrick Roubroeks
Director Xsaga