Hasta La Creative!

At the end of May Carnival Cruise Line launched a creative review, ending a nine-year relationship with Arnold Worldwide in the process.

“We are truly proud of the work and momentum we’ve created together the past nine years and we can confirm that we have mutually decided to part ways,” an Arnold spokesperson said in a statement at the time. “Our relationship with Carnival will be ending this fall, and we wish them the best of success in the future.”

Now sources tell us that R/GA and Droga5 are squaring off for the account in what is presumably the final stage of the review.

We reached out to all parties concerned. Droga5 declined to comment, while R/GA and Carnival Cruise Lines have yet to reply to our requests for comment.

Carnival Cruise Lines spent around $26 million on measured media in the U.S. last year, according to Kantar Media.

Last month, Ancestry.com selected Droga5 New York as its lead creative agency, following a review. Later in the month, the agency debuted its first work for the client with its “Declaration Descendants” July 4 effort. Back in March, Maine’s VIA Agency beat out Droga5 and an unnamed third finalist to win the L.L Bean creative account, according to several anonymous sources.

Earlier this week, Lay’s named BBDO as its new lead creative agency, following a review which included R/GA and three other agencies. Back in April, R/GA lost the E*Trade account when the client selected MullenLowe to handle creative and strategy following a review which also included 72andSunny and Goodby, Silverstein & Partners.

A month prior, Samsung expanded its relationship with R/GA to include broadcast and in May it expanded to Japan with a Tokyo office. Earlier this month, R/GA parted ways with some employees in its New York headquarters in what a spokesperson called a “re-modeling” of its “company structure.”