According to video ad tech company Unruly’s viral chart for 2016, the two-minute spot created by Adam & Eve/DDB attracted just under 2 million shares since launching on 9 November.
The "Buster the Boxer" spot is already the fifth most-shared Christmas ad of all time and the most-shared John Lewis ad ever.
Advertising around sporting events features heavily in this year’s top 20, with Channel 4’s Paralympics coverage ad "We’re the superhumans" at number two with 1.85 million shares. Nike’s "The switch" spot for Euro 2016, in which Cristiano Ronaldo body swaps with a teenager, was sixth most-shared with just under 1 million shares, while Doritos’ Super Bowl "Ultrasound" ad was close behind with just under 900,000 shares.
Meanwhile, music video ads were popular too this year, with Shell’s "Best day of my life" coming third with nearly 1.7 million shares and OK Go’s tie-up with S7 airlines fifth with 1.2 million shares.
Creatives from 10 different countries are represented in the world’s top 20 most-shared ads this year: the UK, US, Denmark, Egypt, Thailand, Bangladesh, India, Norway, the Phillippines and Indonesia.
Last year's most-shared ad was Android's cute spot featuring animals playing together, created by Droga5.
Ian Forrester, global vice-president of insight at Unruly, said: "Social video has dramatically evolved. Brands are adding emotional intelligence and great storytelling to digital advertising.
"We’ve also seen the most successful creatives bubbling up from a vast range of countries and cultures, showing how digital video can break down national boundaries and become a truly global conversation."
Unruly’s Top 20 most-shared ads of 2016
1. John Lewis "Buster the Boxer" (Adam & Eve/DDB) – 1,949,387 shares
2. Channel 4 "We're the superhumans" (4Creative) – 1,851,533 shares
3. Shell "Best day of my life | #makethefuture" (Interlude) – 1,683,072 shares
4. Vodafone "Ramadan 2016" (BBDO Cairo) – 1,435,350 shares
5. OK Go & S7 Airlines "Upside down and inside out" (Damian Kulash and Trish Shie) – 1,240,842 shares
6. Nike "The switch" (Wieden & Kennedy Portland) – 969,650 shares
7. Doritos "Ultrasound" (Peter Carstairs) – 893,465 shares
8. Ariel "#Sharetheload" (BBDO India) – 877,558 shares
9. Cadbury’s Dairy Milk "Aliens" – 852,895 shares
10. 7 Eleven Thailand "Teachers" – 792,328 shares
11. " (Leo Burnett Manila) - 699,396 shares
12. " (W&K Portland) - 641,359 shares
13. " (Try Oslo) - 640,995 shares
14. " - 616,128 shares
15. " (Ogilvy Chicago) - 608,419 shares
16. " (Magna Global) - 590,386 shares
17. " (&Co) - 585,903 shares
18. " - 564,123 shares
19. " - 548,334 shares
20. " - 544,585 shares
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