Men’s fragrance brand Axe partners with FIFA to deliver Gen Z-inspired scents

Axe — known as Lynx in the UK — has partnered with the FIFA World Cup 2026 to launch three limited-edition fragrances from its Fine Fragrance collection. Young men today are redefining the fragrance sector, moving beyond fresh scents toward sweeter, creamier notes and luxury-inspired formats.

Perfumers have developed each fragrance in the collection with some of the world’s largest fragrance houses: Givaudan and International Flavors & Fragrance (IFF). 

As summer and the athletic season heat up, the personal care industry is responding with sports partnerships and sports-inspired skin care solutions. 

According to Axe, the new collection is said to “make fine fragrance quality scents attainable to a generation of men that takes scent seriously.”

Marshmallow Smoke taps into the fast-growing gourmand, food-inspired fragrance trend with a gender-fluid appeal, crafted by a senior perfumer from IFF. Opening with fresh notes of pink pepper and bergamot, the fragrance softens into ambrette and coconut water before settling on a base of vanilla, hazelnut, and dark musk.

White Vetiver is a modern Fougère crafted by Givaudan. Globally sourced top notes of Moroccan spearmint, French lavender, and Canadian fir balsam are blended with Madagascan black pepper, Indian cardamom, geranium, and French clary sage. This dries down to a textured base of Indonesian patchouli oil, Virginian cedarwood, and Amyris oil from the Dominican Republic.

Indigo Haze is a spin on classic fresh lavender scent with a gourmand twist created by Givaudan. Refreshing mint and lavender lead into a heart of orange blossom, geranium, and cedarwood. A contrasting background of molten sugar, moss, and amber completes the ultimate scent.

Setting the scent

According to the Unilever-owned brand, the fragrance category is shifting fast, and today’s young men are not just purchasing single fragrances; they are building their own fragrance wardrobes, collecting and layering scents to develop a signature scent profile that is entirely their own. 

Almost one in three Gen Zers are already embracing Smellmaxxing, a behavior that is driving 25% year-on-year fragrance sales among this generation.

The FIFA World Cup 2026 limited-edition collection is “purpose-built to speak to this movement” — offering three distinct fragrances to layer across the collection and with Axe’s wider Fine Fragrance range.

Personal Care Insights speaks with Caroline Gregory, global brand director for Axe at Unilever, to find out more about the new scents and broader men’s fragrance trends. 

How are male Gen Z consumers reshaping the modern men’s fragrance market?
Gregory: There’s a clear generational shift happening in how younger men approach fragrance. Traditional masculine codes like fougere, woody, and fresh are willing to go beyond the conventional boundaries, with younger consumers embracing sweeter, creamier, edible notes and a growing appetite for bringing luxury perfumery into everyday formats.

Axe has officially partnered with the FIFA World Cup 2026 to launch three limited-edition fragrances from its Fine Fragrance collection.Neo-gourmand has exploded in recent years, and we’ve watched it rise in real time, moving from niche discovery to mainstream conversation, nowhere more visibly than on #PerfumeTok. There’s also a meaningful shift toward gender-fluid choices and a move away from the idea that men’s fragrance has to smell a certain way. Younger shoppers are confident in their preferences, and they want scents that feel premium and personal, which is exactly what this collection was built to deliver.

Why are gourmand fragrances resonating so strongly with Gen Z consumers right now?
Gregory: Gourmand fragrances tick several boxes at once for Gen Z. There’s desirability in how sweet and addictive they are, and a real self-expression dimension too, with bold, gender-fluid choices that say something about who you are without needing a label. The result is a scent experience that’s emotionally rewarding and socially distinctive, the kind of thing that gets noticed and talked about. 

Younger shoppers have also moved beyond checking labels, and instead, they care about whether a scent smells high-quality and allows them to express themselves, which is exactly what the rise of dupe culture tells us. Axe is well placed here because the Fine Fragrance Collection was built to deliver fine-fragrance-quality scents in an everyday deodorant format, combining luxury perfumery craftsmanship with functional technology to create something longer-lasting, more sophisticated, and accessible. 

How is the trend of “smellmaxxing” influencing product development and portfolio strategy for Axe?
Gregory: For us at Axe, it is influencing how we think about the portfolio as a whole. We’re designing with layerability in mind, building complementary fragrance profiles across formats in fragrance, shower, and sticks that encourage mixing and experimentation rather than locking people into a single product. The goal is to help people build a personalized scent identity. And ‘smellmaxxing’ isn’t a niche behavior anymore, it’s a whole culture where consumers are truly invested in their scent identity.

How important is fine-fragrance expertise in elevating mass-market body care and deodorant products?
Gregory: Partnering with Givaudan and IFF means we’re designing with a genuine fine fragrance mindset, prioritizing ingredient quality, sophisticated composition, and premium olfactive signatures. Instead of simply following trends, we are working with the best houses in the world to actively shape them and bring that level of craft into an everyday format.

How are advancements in fragrance science changing consumer expectations around performance claims?
Gregory: Our approach to science is really clear. We don’t talk science or make claims for the sake of it or to do as the rest of the category does. Instead, we use it to make the fragrance itself better and to help it perform in every situation. Our ZincZap technology does exactly that. It has been developed over eight years, and it creates a platform to put the fragrance in the spotlight, improving its richness and longevity rather than simply bolting protection on top. 

How do large-scale cultural events such as FIFA influence fragrance marketing and consumer engagement strategies today?
Gregory: Relevance is everything, and for a brand like Axe, being present at the biggest cultural moments isn’t optional because that’s where the conversation is happening. As an official sponsor of FIFA World Cup 2026, we’re going all in with a limited-edition fine-fragrance collection all built around a very Axe truth: you can’t control the heat, the sweat, or the questionable fancy dress, but you can still smell incredible. 

How important are social media and digital fragrance communities in shaping scent innovation today?
Gregory: #PerfumeTok is now the number one scent discovery platform, and it’s as much about hype as information. Blind buying is real, FOMO — fear of missing out — is driving decisions, and fragrance communities on TikTok are moving faster than traditional trend forecasting ever could.Marshmallow Smoke taps into the fast-growing gourmand, food-inspired fragrance trend with a gender-fluid appeal.

As a result, we are constantly observing, forecasting, and trying to land our innovations at the exact moment a trend moves from niche to mainstream because timing is everything. Cherry Spritz launched as gourmand was exploding, and quickly became the number one Axe Fine Fragrance variant. Marshmallow Smoke follows the same logic, and we are now seeing Marshmallow become one of the top ingredients in fragrance launches. We feel confident in our ability to keep reading and responding to these shifts, and consumers can expect to see more to come.

Which fragrance families or trends do you expect to dominate men’s fragrance over the next few years?
Gregory: Gourmand isn’t going anywhere. It’s moved firmly into the mainstream, and the appetite for these scents, particularly among younger consumers, shows no sign of slowing. Middle Eastern-inspired notes are also gaining serious ground in Western markets, with ouds, leathers, and the richness of that olfactive tradition increasingly resonating outside their traditional geography. Classic fougere and fresh profiles will hold, but the more interesting growth is happening in the niches, which is exactly where Axe is positioning itself to lead.