Lloyds TSB courts WPP ire over 10m Adam & Eve task

Lloyds TSB has appointed RKCR/Y&R breakaway Adam & Eve to handle a 10m sports sponsorship brief. The agency will work on projects around the banks 80m tie-up with the London 2012 Olympics.

Lloyds TSB has appointed RKCR/Y&R breakaway Adam & Eve to handle a £10m sports sponsorship brief. The agency will work on projects around the bank’s £80m tie-up with the London 2012 Olympics.

It is the agency’s first major appointment since opening its doors in January this year, although it is not thought that the bulk of Lloyds £40m advertising account, which is handled by RKCR, will be affected by the appointment.

But the deal may cause trouble at RKCR owner, WPP Group, which is understood to believe that Lloyds’ sponsorship business, and particularly its Olympics deal, would fall under Adam & Eve’s non-compete clause.

The appointment comes as the high street bank unveils triple jump Olympian Jon≠athan Edwards and Paralympic basketball player Ade Adepitan as its “official” ambassadors for London 2012. They will take part in a number of internal and external initiatives around the bank’s involvement in the Olympics.

The bank is also understood to be preparing a number of community marketing initiatives, such as sponsoring school sports days, and is considering a number of product initiatives geared at athletes and young sports people.

Adam & Eve was launched by the former RKCR/Y&R senior management team of James Murphy, Ben Priest and David Golding. They left the agency last June.

A spokeswoman for the bank says there are “no plans” to extend its roster. RKCR/ Y&R was unavailable for comment and Adam & Eve declined to comment.

Lloyds TSB secured the first Tier One sponsorship with sister brand Scottish Widows in 2006. Scottish Widows has launched Olympic-themed TV ads and is this year extending its above the line budget by 50% in order to capitalise on its association (MW February 21).

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