Market Report: Azerbaijan
The central Asian territory has seen significant advances in ticketing since the arrival of the now dominant iTicket.
Primary ticketing
Launched in 2016 by one of the country’s leading entrepreneurs, Ziya Mammadov, iTicket has grown to become the dominant ticketer, claiming a 95% market share. “I saw that the ticketing companies operating in Azerbaijan were from other countries and weren’t offering a very satisfying experience, so I wanted to create a ticketing company,” says Mammadov.
The company has ticketed the national Formula 1 events, Islamic Games, football matches, many concert halls, and all government events and venues. It offers high-tech solutions such as 3D maps of venues, showing prospective buyers exactly what their view of the stage would be. The firm also has a promoter division.
Distribution of sales
“When we started in 2016, tickets were 90% paper and 10% digital. Now, it’s 95% digital and 5% paper,” says Mammadov. “There are still some older people who like to buy paper tickets from our kiosks.”
Secondary ticketing
Reselling tickets was outlawed in Azerbaijan, following concerted lobbying by iTicket. “Thanks to the government, we have reduced the secondary market by 95%,” says Mammadov. Nonetheless, Viagogo, StubHub, and other platforms exist.
Mammadov says iTicket is planning to create a fan-to-fan exchange platform for people who can no longer attend events.
International/domestic splits & genres
Around 80% of commercial concerts in Azerbaijan are by international acts and 20% by domestic talent.
Cultural analysis
The arrival of iTicket almost ten years ago has seen massive improvement in the technology side of ticketing in the market. Digitalisation has become commonplace, and ticket scanning at venues is now much faster, enabling much quicker entry to venues.
The increasingly busy live entertainment sector is burgeoning and on a growth path.
Taxes & fees
VAT is 18%, which applies to tickets and is paid by ticketing companies.
Country Profile: Azerbaijan
The live music market in this central Asian territory has come on leaps and bounds in recent years, particularly around the capital, Baku.
iTicket Production is the promoter arm of the country’s top ticketer, iTicket. Formed in 2018, it has organised shows by the likes of Will Smith, J Balvin, Black Coffee, and Imagine Dragons. The Baku-headquartered firm works in countries across the region and nearby, such as Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Türkiye.
“Azerbaijani people love going to concerts; it’s an important part of their social life,” says iTicket Production CEO Ugur Aydin. “And they particularly like to share their experiences on social media, so the hottest mainstream acts are in particularly high demand here.”
“Azerbaijani people love going to concerts; it’s an important part of their social life”
“Yet, while locals love seeing big acts, it can be a challenge to persuade the talent to route through Central Asia, as it’s not long been a traditional stop,” says Aydin. But this is changing, not least because Baku is now a stop on the Formula One circuit, increasing its visibility around the world.
And he says his company is working hard to raise awareness among the wider international industry of the viability of the market. “Some artist agents aren’t very familiar with Azerbaijan, but we are changing that, and we find they are very pleased to see an established company working with top-level acts. I think we will increasingly see Baku on world tour routes in the near future.”
“Some artist agents aren’t very familiar with Azerbaijan, but we are changing that”
When it comes to breaking new acts in this region, Aydin says acts should be prepared to adapt their fees according to each territory’s purchasing power. That said, people will travel across borders to see their favourite artists, and there’s regular music tourism for the right acts.
Other promoters in the market working with international talent tend to be associated with the music venues or festivals, such as the longstanding Baku Jazz Festival, which celebrated its 19th year in 2024.