Several major sponsors, including DFDS and Google, have decided to withdraw their support for Copenhagen Pride this year. The decision comes after a controversy surrounding Pride’s handling of political issues, specifically the conflict in Gaza. DFDS, which provided all the trucks for the Pride parade last year, has announced that they will no longer support the event. “We want to ensure that our support goes to events where the message of diversity and inclusion is clear and unambiguous,” says Torben Carlsen, CEO of DFDS. He adds that the company will seek other ways to support the LGBTQ+ community where there is no risk of misunderstandings or political affiliations. Google has also announced that they are pausing their partnership with Copenhagen Pride. “We have chosen to focus our efforts on other initiatives that support the LGBTQ+ community throughout the year,” says a spokesperson from Google Denmark. Google, however, emphasizes that they still encourage their employees to participate in Pride festivities.
This sponsor exodus follows a number of other major companies like Maersk and Novo Nordisk, as well as organizations like the Confederation of Danish Industry (Dansk Industri), that have previously withdrawn their support. These withdrawals come after flawed communication from Pride in February, where they urged their partners to take a stand on the Gaza conflict. Pride has acknowledged the mistakes and expressed an intention to rebuild trust with their sponsors. Despite the many challenges, Copenhagen Pride’s organizational spokesperson, Benjamin Hansen, remains positive about the situation. “We are in talks with several new potential partners and look forward to announcing new collaborations soon,” says Hansen.
It is still uncertain how this development will affect the overall budget for Copenhagen Pride, which has previously been heavily dependent on sponsorships. The organization had budgeted for 8.5 million Danish kroner in sponsor contributions this year.