Barclays suspends sponsorship of Live Nation festivals

Barclays has suspended its sponsorship of Live Nation’s UK festivals, including Latitude, Isle of Wight and Download, after artists and fans protested against the bank servicing clients who supply military supplies to Israel.

Live Nation said: “After discussions with the artists, we have reached an agreement with Barclays that they will withdraw from sponsorship of our festivals.”

As part of a campaign by the Bands Boycott Barclays (BBB) ​​group, which consists of musicians and industry experts, artists have pulled out of Live Nation festivals such as The Great Escape, Download, Latitude and Isle of Wight due to their association with Barclays. Live Nation signed a five-year sponsorship deal with Barclays in 2023.

In a press statement, Barclays said it had been asked and agreed to suspend participation in the remaining Live Nation festivals in 2024: “Barclays customers who hold tickets to these festivals will not be affected and their tickets will remain valid. The protesters want Barclays to de-bank arms companies, a sector to which we remain committed as it is an essential part of the security of this country and our allies.”

“They have resorted to intimidation of our staff, repeated vandalism of our stores and online harassment. The only thing this small group of activists will achieve is to weaken essential support for cultural events enjoyed by millions of people. It is time for leading politicians, business leaders, academics and artists to stand together against this.”

In a statement posted on social media, BBB said: “We are now a collective of hundreds of musicians and industry professionals from all angles and levels of the music industry, and together we have driven a bank that enabled genocide out of our music festivals.”