Pepsi and Diageo withdraw sponsorship of Wireless Festival after Kanye West booking

Pepsi and Diageo have withdrawn their sponsorship of Wireless Festival, which Kanye West is due to headline, after Sir Keir Starmer joined criticism of the event.

West has previously been condemned over his antisemitic remarks.

The 48-year-old US rapper - who has not performed in the UK since he headlined Glastonbury in 2015 - is set to top the bill for all three nights of the festival in London's Finsbury Park in July.

Festival organisers - and the government - are now coming under increasing pressure over the booking.

A Pepsi spokesperson said: "Pepsi has decided to withdraw its sponsorship of Wireless Festival."

Diageo, owner of Johnnie Walker and Captain Morgan, said on Sunday evening it had also withdrawn.

A spokesperson said: "We have informed the organisers of our concerns and as it stands, Diageo will not sponsor the 2026 Wireless festival."

PayPal, which is a payment partner for the festival, will not appear in any future promotional materials, the Press Association reported.

Sky News has approached festival organisers for a response.

In the time since he last performed on UK soil, West has drawn criticism for antisemitic X posts, a Super Bowl advert directing people to a swastika T-shirt and a song referencing Hitler.

Sir Keir said it was "deeply concerning" that West has been booked "despite his previous antisemitic remarks and celebration of Nazism".

"Antisemitism in any form is abhorrent and must be confronted clearly and firmly wherever it appears. Everyone has a responsibility to ensure Britain is a place where Jewish people feel safe and secure," the prime minister said.

West, also known as Ye, has been barred from X over antisemitism on multiple occasions.

In January, West took out a full-page advert in the Wall Street Journal to apologise, titled: "To Those I've Hurt."

"I am not a Nazi or an antisemite," it said. "I love Jewish people."

West attributed his previous outbursts to his bipolar-1 disorder, writing: "In early 2025, I fell into a four-month-long manic episode of psychotic, paranoid and impulsive behaviour that destroyed my life.

"I lost touch with reality. Things got worse the longer I ignored the problem. I said and did things I deeply regret."

The rapper also apologised to the black community, saying he had let it down.

West previously lost his deal with Adidas following a post on his social media in 2022, in which he shared an image of a swastika inside a Star of David.

Adidas, which had worked with the rapper on his Yeezy trainers, subsequently donated more than $150m (£117m) to anti-hate groups.

Read more from Sky News:
UK military reveals locations through exercise app
Bryan Cranston on his new role

Shortly afterwards, he drew criticism over a TV advert that directed people to a website selling a swastika t-shirt and released a song titled Heil Hitler.

Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, last week called for the government to ban West from entering the UK.

He said Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood should "ban him from coming to this country - we've got to take antisemitism more seriously".

On Monday, shadow home secretary Chris Philp echoed his calls in a letter to Ms Mahmood, calling for her to use immigration laws to prevent West from entering the UK.

He described West's previous comments as "not a one-off lapse, but a pattern of behaviour that has caused real offence and distress to Jewish communities", and added: "At a time when antisemitism is rising in the UK, allowing someone with his track record to headline a major public event sends entirely the wrong message."

In a post on X, the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) backed banning West from entering the UK.

It said: "The government can ban anyone from entering the UK who is not a citizen and whose presence would 'not be conducive to the public good'.

"Surely this is a clear case."

Sky News understands the Home Office is yet to receive an application for West to enter the UK.

(c) Sky News 2026: Pepsi and Diageo withdraw sponsorship of Wireless Festival after Kanye West booking