POSTERS have surfaced on London tube trains slamming Wimbledon sponsor Barclays for “bankrolling” fossil fuel expansion and Israeli arms companies.
The posters – which accuse the British bank of profiting from both global warming and the Israeli-Palestine conflict – were spotted by commuters yesterday in one of the carriages of a London Underground train.
The ads take aim at Wimbledon in particular, with organisers under pressure to drop Barclays as a sponsor amid accusations of the bank using the event to “cover up its role” in the climate crisis and Israel.
One of the posters spotted shows a hand-drawn picture of a tennis court with a large crater and a dead tennis player lying beside it, and reads: “From Gaza to global warming, we’re making a killing.
“We’re funding everything from fossil fuels to the Israeli arms trade. So, when you keep your money with us, you can rest assured you’ll be making a killing too.”
The poster also features the Barclays logo and a reimagined Wimbledon logo wherein the crossed tennis rackets and tennis ball have instead been replaced with a skull and crossed rackets.
The second of the two posters shows a tennis player mid-swing with blood-covered money falling from their pocket.
This poster reads, “At Wimbledon, we’ve let Barclays’ dirty money stain our tennis whites”, whilst also boasting the Barclays and Wimbledon logos.
Alongside the two logos read the words: “Our sponsor bankrolls fossil fuel expansion and Israeli arms companies, and we couldn’t care less!”
The two posters left social media users divided as the snaps of them were shared online yesterday with the caption: “Saw these on the tube. What are these?”
The post received over 1,300 likes and more than 140 comments from social media users who engaged in fierce debate over the posters.
One user said: “These are put up by activists and will get removed once they realise. Lots of different ones have appeared over the years.”
Another added: “Wild but true. Quite dystopian.”
A third commented: “These are really well done. I have a lot of respect for people trying to make a difference.”
Another wrote: “Definitely a much better approach to how they’ve conveyed their messages in the past.”
A fifth replied: “Isn’t doing this kind of thing illegal? Particularly if it’s a physical ad.
“Billposting is a crime, no? [British Transport Police] exists and tubes have cameras on them I believe. Those protesters must be brave or stupid.”
