Reading and Leeds Festivals split with nine year title sponsor Carling
 

After a nine year partnership, Festival Republic has announced that Carling will no longer be the headline sponsor or official lager of the Reading and Leeds festivals.

Following a successful long-term partnership, the organisers explained, it was by mutual agreement that both parties felt the time was right to pursue new opportunities. But as Sponsorship Manager James Kent told The UK Sponsorship Database, sponsorship will still have a role at the festivals: "Whilst our mutual decision not to renew the title sponsorship with Carling has allowed us to reclaim the prestigious festival names the Reading and Leeds festivals, we are currently in talks with several brands for lower tier sponsorship packages across a number of brand categories". This would seem to mark a happy turning point in the festival’s history with Reading Festival reclaiming its prestigious name after the Carling Weekend association. The festival first arrived in Reading in 1971 and has been hosted on the same site on the banks of the River Thames ever since. Festival Republic’s Melvin Benn took over Reading in 1989, when attendance was at an all   Need some expert help? ------------Click here-----------> **Home** After Dinner Speakers Associations Audio Visual Catering Celebrities Conferences Creative consultants Direct marketing Entertainers Equipment hire Event management Exhibitions Financial services Gifts/Clothing Hospitality Incentives International Legal advisers Licensing Logistics Marketing Media buying Monitoring/auditing Music Photography Printers PR agencies Recruitment agencies Research Sales promotion agencies Signs Sponsorship consultants Training Trophies and awards Venues Video Web-related services Other services time low. The festival underwent a serious shake up and opened with a stellar line-up including New Order, The Pogues, The Mission, The Wonder Stuff and The Sugarcubes, that would put Reading back on music fans' radar and cement the future of the festival for ever more. Interested parties should contact James Kent on jkent@festivalrepublic.com for further information about sponsorship opportunities.