Heinz handed Habs fans napkins made of rival Lightning jerseys

Heinz is Canada's #1 ketchup, proudly made in Montreal and official ketchup of the Canadiens; game-day eating was staining the one thing fans protect at all costs.

Napkins cut from Tampa Bay Lightning jerseys: fans wipe ketchup-covered hands on the rival's colours instead of risking their own.

'Rival Wipes' handed out at the Bell Centre during Game 6 against the Lightning, returning for Round 2 against the Sabres on May 10 with La Cage distribution, plus Instagram videos and static assets through the series.

The activation returned for a second round of the playoffs after its first giveaway, extending Heinz's Canadiens and MLSE partnerships into a fan ritual celebrated across social media.

LBB reported on 2026-05-08 that during Game 6 between the Montreal Canadiens and the Tampa Bay Lightning, Heinz handed out 'Rival Wipes' at the Bell Centre: napkins made from cut-up jerseys in 'suspiciously familiar' Lightning colours. Rather than risking stains on their own sacred Sainte-Flanelle jersey, fans were invited to wipe ketchup-covered hands on the rival team's jersey instead.

Rethink's creative tapped what both quotes call an irrational loyalty — Xavier Blais, Rethink's executive creative director, said the Habs jersey is 'something Habs fans protect at all costs' and that turning rival jerseys into napkins 'taps into that same irrational passion'. Brian Neumann, head of brand and creativity at Kraft Heinz Canada, noted Heinz is Canada's #1 ketchup, 'proudly made in Montreal' and the Canadiens' official ketchup, and called Rival Wipes 'a simple, fan-first ritual'.

The activation returned for Round 2: wipes available as the Habs faced the Sabres on Sunday, May 10, at the Bell Centre and at La Cage, with videos rolling out across Instagram and static and video assets running throughout the series.

The insight is behavioural, not promotional: fans already wipe messy hands on something — the brand just redirected the target.

Rivalry made a napkin shareable, turning an in-arena giveaway into social content across Instagram.

It converts Heinz's liability, an almost inevitable stain, into a badge of fandom rather than a reason to skip the ketchup.

Turn your product's biggest drawback — the stain — into the joke, then aim it at the thing fans love more than the product: beating their rival.

As of the May 2026 report, Rival Wipes were being distributed again for Round 2 against the Sabres at the Bell Centre and La Cage, with Instagram video support running through the playoff series.