Barclays stops festival sponsorship due to protests

Barclays has suspended its sponsorship of all music festivals organized by Live Nation in 2024, including popular events such as Download, Latitude and the Isle of Wight Festival.

This decision followed protests and withdrawals by several artists due to Barclays’ investment ties with arms companies that trade with Israel.

The move comes after artists including country singer CMAT, metal band Ithaca and comedian Joanne McNally cancelled their scheduled performances this summer. In response, Live Nation confirmed that Barclays would be withdrawing its festival sponsorships following discussions with the artists.

Barclays had signed a five-year sponsorship agreement with Live Nation through 2023, but the suspension will not extend to the entire term of the contract.

Lankum, a Mercury Award-nominated band that will perform at Latitude, expressed their approval of the announcement on Instagram, highlighting the collective efforts of bands, artists and fans that have reached this point and stressing the importance of standing together for a common cause.

The decision follows a wider trend of artistic protests against Barclays, including a boycott by over 100 artists at the Great Escape Festival in Brighton in May. Protesters accused Barclays of increasing its investment in arms companies linked to Israel in light of the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

A Barclays spokesperson confirmed the suspension and assured that customers with festival tickets would not be affected. He explained: “Barclays has been asked to suspend participation in the remaining Live Nation festivals in 2024 and has agreed.” The bank reiterated its commitment to the defence sector as essential to national and allied security, despite the protests leading to intimidation and vandalism of staff.

Several bands, including Pest Control, Speed, Scowl, Zulu and Ithaca, have cancelled their participation in this weekend’s Download Festival. Pest Control stressed that they would not sacrifice their principles for personal gain, while Ithaca called on festival organisers to think more carefully about who they accept funds from.

Irish singer CMAT withdrew from Latitude because she did not want her music to be associated with violence. Comedians Joanne McNally and Sophie Duker also withdrew, with Duker stressing that she did not want to be involved in violence.

Grace Campbell, the daughter of former Tony Blair spokesman Alastair Campbell, and fellow comedian Alexandra Haddow also cancelled their appearances. Haddow said she could not “in good conscience accept” the fee.

Barclays has previously acknowledged the human suffering caused by the Gaza conflict, stated that the bank offers financial services rather than direct investments in arms companies, and stressed that decisions on arms embargoes should be made by governments.

Protest group Bands Boycott Barclays celebrated the suspension as a victory, condemning Barclays for its involvement with arms companies and calling its decision a moral victory. It thanked the hundreds of artists who took action to make their voices heard.