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Ladbrokes has commissioned Neverland to create an advertising campaign around the rescheduled Euro 2020 football tournament.

The betting brand launched a Cheltenham-focused campaign by its previous retained agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty earlier this month but is now planning to hire shops for specific briefs – though it may appoint a long-term partner following a period of transition.

Angela Porter, brand marketing director, Ladbrokes and Coral, said: “The reason we hired Neverland was its thinking was new and fresh but very on brand – and on brand for the brand we want Ladbrokes to be.

“Neverland understood the Ladbrokes brand from the very first conversation. And understands how we feel about sport. The conversation was easy and collaborative and challenging at the same time. When they talked about the creative, I realised it was something I was very excited to make.”

Porter said Neverland would “get a bite of the pie” when it comes to the pitch list for subsequent Ladbrokes briefs. She added: “It’s clear that what is coming back [from Neverland] is not just a campaign but a way of thinking for the brand.”

Jon Forsyth, founding partner at Neverland, said: "It is a very important moment for Ladbrokes and we are poised and ready to launch a new campaign that celebrates what it is now but, just as importantly, what it will be in the future."

Ladbrokes Coral Group hired BBH to the advertising account for both its eponymous brands in October 2019 after a pitch through Oystercatchers. The Publicis Groupe agency beat The & Partnership and Pablo to the account.

BBH’s first work for Ladbrokes launched in March 2020 and positioned itself as the destination "Where the nation plays". One spot featured people who treat their lives like a casino, while another portrayed the different styles of sports bettors.

The shop will continue to be the retained agency on the Coral brand, which Porter said the Publicis Groupe agency really understood.

Porter said: “In the future, this will allow BBH to focus on Coral, to make it the brand we know it is and will continue to be. If anything, this change will allow our relationship to be stronger.”