Ad protests target Wimbledon’s ‘strawberries and cream’ image over event’s ties with Barclays

By Ben Morse, CNN

(CNN) — An activist group has targeted a high-profile sponsor of Wimbledon – a highlight of Britain’s sporting and social calendar – by pasting over hundreds of billboards, tube station and bus shelter ads with provocative artwork on day one of the grass court tennis tournament in southwest London.

Brandalism said it launched the campaign against Barclays Bank, which has a multi-year sponsorship deal with Wimbledon reportedly worth more than $25 million, over its ties to the fossil fuel industry and companies that supply arms to Israel.

“Wimbledon’s cherished strawberries and cream image has been thoroughly sullied by its decision to partner with Barclays, the most toxic bank in Europe, while the bank continues to pour millions into the arms trade and fossil fuel companies driving climate chaos,” Kit Speedwell, a spokesperson for Brandalism, said in a statement.

“Wimbledon must stop providing cover for Barclays’ grotesque lack of morals and immediately end the sponsorship deal,” Speedwell added.

One of the “hacked” billboards shows the body of a tennis player on a grass court. Blood appears to be seeping from the body, which is lying next to a huge crater alongside the caption: “From Gaza to global warming, we’re making a killing.”

Another shows a player serving on one half and oil lapping the sea on the other half with the caption: “A doubles team against the climate.”

Alongside the billboard campaign, more than 100 people gathered outside the All England Lawn Tennis Club Monday to protest Barclays sponsorship of Wimbledon at a demonstration organized by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign.

In May, the campaign published a report alleging that Barclays “had shareholdings in, and/or provided loans and financial services to, at least nine companies known to be producing weapons and military technology sold to Israel and used in its militarised attacks on Palestinians.”

A statement from Barclays emailed to CNN Monday said the bank was “proud of our partnership with Wimbledon which supports the growth of The Championships and opportunities for young people across the UK through the Wimbledon Foundation.

“Like many other banks, we provide financial services to companies supplying defence products to the UK, NATO and its allies.”

The statement emphasized that those services did not include investments for Barclays, noting that, “decisions on the implementation of arms embargos to other nations are the job of respective elected governments.”

Barclays also pushed back against criticism over its financing for the fossil fuel industry, which a recent report found reached more than $235 billion between 2016 and 2023.

In the statement, the bank argued that investing in oil and gas assets would continue to be important as the clean energy industry develops.

Barclays emphasized its committment to “financing an energy sector in transition, including providing $1trn of Sustainable and Transition Finance by 2030 to build a cleaner and more secure energy system.”

When reached by CNN for comment on the protests, an All England Lawn Tennis Club spokesperson said: “Barclays is an important partner of ours and we are working closely with them in a number of areas, including through our Set for Success programme, which is helping to support disadvantaged secondary students in schools across the UK.

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