Animals Are Not Ours to experiment on, eat, wear, use for entertainment or abuse in any other way.

PETA Australia
  • Action Centre
  • Campaigns
  • Living
  • News
  • About
  • EMAIL SIGN-UP
  • DONATE NOW
    • VANGUARD SOCIETY
    • PETA PRESENTS
    • SUPPORT OUR WORK
    • MEMBERSHIP SERVICES
    • GIFTS IN WILLS
  • EMAIL SIGN-UP
  • DONATE NOW
    • VANGUARD SOCIETY
    • PETA PRESENTS
    • SUPPORT OUR WORK
    • MEMBERSHIP SERVICES
    • GIFTS IN WILLS
  • EMAIL SIGN-UP
  • DONATE NOW
    • VANGUARD SOCIETY
    • PETA PRESENTS
    • SUPPORT OUR WORK
    • MEMBERSHIP SERVICES
    • GIFTS IN WILLS
  • Action Centre
  • Campaigns
  • Living
  • News
  • About
  • EMAIL SIGN-UP
  • DONATE NOW
    • VANGUARD SOCIETY
    • PETA PRESENTS
    • SUPPORT OUR WORK
    • MEMBERSHIP SERVICES
    • GIFTS IN WILLS
PETA Australia
  • EMAIL SIGN-UP
  • DONATE NOW
    • VANGUARD SOCIETY
    • PETA PRESENTS
    • SUPPORT OUR WORK
    • MEMBERSHIP SERVICES
    • GIFTS IN WILLS
PETA Search Icon
A photo of the Running of the Bulls.

Running of the Bulls Cancelled Again; Bulls Spared a Bloody Death

News / Running of the Bulls Cancelled Again; Bulls Spared a Bloody Death
6 February 2021

Great news for bulls: the San Fermín festival and the infamous Running of the Bulls event have been cancelled for 2021.


A photo of the Running of the Bulls.
Running of the Bulls in Pamplona.

This is the second year in a row that the festival won’t be going ahead because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The mayor of Pamplona, Spain, must stop allowing terrified bulls to be stabbed to death for this barbaric event for good.

Why Ban the Running of the Bulls?

The Running of the Bulls is part of a barbaric bloodbath that takes place every summer during the San Fermín festival in Pamplona.

The tourists – including many Australians– who visit the city during the festival often don’t realise that the same bulls who slip and slide down the cobbled streets during the bull runs are later tortured to death in the bullring. Throughout the week-long festival, at least 48 bulls are violently stabbed to death.

A matador prepares to deal the final blow to a bull during a bullfight.

What Spanish People Think About Bullfighting

More than 80% of Spanish people oppose the blood sport, and approximately 56% fewer official bullfights took place in 2018 than in 2007, but these sick displays are able to continue in large part because of tourist money. Thrill-seekers fail to realise that running with the bulls means participating in a festival in which animals are tormented and killed.

PETA's protest at Pamplona 2018.

PETA and the San Fermín Festival

PETA UK has been teaming up with Spanish animal rights groups every year since 2002 to organise eye-catching protests in Pamplona in which hundreds of activists, including Australians, have taken a stand to draw attention to the cruelty of the bull runs and bullfights.

We’ve been calling for an end to this cruel spectacle for years, and now, under rather unique circumstances, the event has been called off – but it shouldn’t take a global pandemic for this to happen. It’s time for authorities to recognise that the ritualistic torture of bulls has no place in a compassionate society and cancel the event for good.

What You Can Do 

Please join us in urging the mayor of Pamplona to ban the Running of the Bulls and subsequent bullfights permanently.

©Tras Los Muros
The victim of a bullfight in Pamplona.

TAKE ACTION!

Help Animals in 2025: Renew Your PETA Membership!

Donate Now

Recent Press Hits

  • Gradient background with a white rabbit silhouette and the text ‘PETA.’
    Calling on the Brisbane Broncos to Retire Buck and Renounce Rodeos
  • a baby and adult fox
    © Jeremy Hynes / Unsplash
    Australian Fashion Week Bans Wild-Animal Skins, Furs and Wild Feathers 
  • Gradient background with a white rabbit silhouette and the text ‘PETA.’
    Eurovision: Cheer On Australia’s “Milkshake Man” with Dairy-Free Treats 

Get PETA Updates

Sign me up for the following e-mail:
Our collection, storage, use and disclosure of personal information is guided by the Privacy Act and the Australian Privacy Principles. More information about our privacy policies and practices is available in our privacy policy. That policy also details how you may access, seek correction of and pursue complaints regarding the personal information we hold about you. If you have any queries about these procedures or any aspect of our work, please contact us on (08) 8556 5828 or at [email protected] or write to us at PO Box 20308, World Square, Sydney NSW 2002. Current subscribers: You will continue to receive e-mails unless you explicitly opt out here.
PETA Fist Logo

Connect with PETA

  • Facebook Icon, PETA International
  • Instagram Icon, PETA International
  • Youtube Icon, PETA International

PETA International Logo

Mailing address:
PO Box 20308 World Square Sydney NSW 2002 ACN – 128209923

Info

  • Contact Us
  • Media Centre
  • Careers
  • Donate Now
  • Subscribe to E-News
  • Bequests

Services

  • Accessibility
  • Site Map
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • © 2025 PETA Australia Pty Ltd. Read our full policy.

International Sites

  • PETA US
  • PETA France
  • PETA Netherlands
  • PETA Germany
  • PETA India
  • PETA UK
  • PETA Asia
  • 亚洲善待动物组织
  • PETA Latino

PETA acknowledges the traditional custodians of the land on which we work and live. We pay our respects to elders past and present and extend that respect to all other indigenous peoples.

Registered address: PETA Australia Pty Ltd, 219 Henley Beach Road, Torrensville. SA, 5031