Market Report: Denmark
As the home of major festivals like Roskilde, Aarhus Jazz Festival, and the Copenhagen Jazz Festival, Denmark has a strong domestic live market and is also a growing destination for tourists, giving its music scene a unique flavour and position.
Primary ticketing
Ticketmaster Denmark and Eventim brand Billetlugen are the dominant players in the Danish market, but local operator billet.dk also has a strong foothold in the country.
Distribution of sales
Ticketmaster says that 70% of its ticket sales in Denmark are now digital.
Value of market
According to Statista, the Danish live music market should be worth $324m in 2024, rising to $341.6m by 2028.
Secondary ticketing
Secondary ticketing for profit is illegal in Denmark and the Face-value European Alliance for Ticketing (FEAT) classifies it as “not a big issue due to regulation in this area.”
“This year, we’ve heavily focused on our resale function, ensuring tickets get into the hands of fans while combating ticket fraud.”
Jakob Lund, Ticketmaster’s regional vice president for Northwest Europe and MD for the Netherlands and Denmark, notes that his company is taking steps to ensure that tickets being resold are done within very strict parameters. “This year, we’ve heavily focused on our resale function, ensuring tickets get into the hands of fans while combating ticket fraud,” he explains.
Eventim has made similar moves here. “EVENTIM.Pass and fanSALE have increasing relevance in all of Scandinavia to ensure ticket-buyers a fair and safe experience to reduce secondary ticketing,” says Jens B. Arnesen, CEO of Eventim Scandinavia.
“EVENTIM.Pass is our digital ticketing solution that allows customers to manage their tickets via their Eventim app in a secure digital format. This gives peace of mind to both the promoters and the genuine fans. FanSALE is our fan-to-fan resale platform that provides customers with a secure and legitimate way to resell their tickets, ensuring a trustworthy and transparent experience.”
“Selling above face value is prohibited by law in Denmark, but the resale market is still there, and we have seen substantial growth in 2024.”
Resale platform TicketSwap, however, adds, “Selling above face value is prohibited by law in Denmark, but the resale market is still there, and we have seen substantial growth in 2024. TicketSwap launched its Nordic office in 2022, and the feedback has been positive from users since they were missing a good option for safe and easy resale that also followed the local laws.”
International/domestic splits & genres
“In general, the Scandinavian markets have experienced an increased interest in high-quality live entertainment,” says Arnesen. “That includes a broad spectrum, from upcoming artists at minor venues to well-established artists doing stadium tours.”
Cultural analysis
“In all sectors, we find that organisers highly value our comprehensive support and services, which begin with initial market research for potential shows and extend through optimising event creation and marketing,” says Arnesen. “Our presence onsite ensures a smooth experience for ticket-buyers. By providing end-to-end assistance and acting as a dedicated partner, we see significant potential for mutual business growth with organisers in Scandinavia.”
Taxes & charges
Eurostat, the European Commission’s statistics agency, reported in 2021 that price levels for basic goods and services in Denmark were 40% higher than the EU average. As a comparatively expensive country, it will not be surprising that VAT rates are high but how high is what might shock other nations in Europe.
There is a standard VAT rate of 25%.
Country Profile: Denmark
With a population of around 6m, Denmark assumes a natural slot between Germany and Sweden on the European tour route. But when Covid closed the gates, domestic artists rose to fill the gap, and they have stuck around.
Demand for big international shows remains strong, of course, but like many European markets, Denmark has increasingly figured out how to fill its own arenas and stadiums.
This summer saw the domestic phenomenon taken to its extremes at Copenhagen’s Parken Stadium, where Danish- language post-punkers The Minds of 99 played three consecutive nights before more than 150,000 fans – a triple sell-out never previously achieved by even the biggest international acts.
“When we went up with the 2024 shows, we believed we had two shows that likely would sell out, but when all 100,000 tickets were gone in a matter of minutes, we had to do a third show to meet the demand,” Live Nation Denmark’s Ulrik Ørum-Petersen told IQ. “Impressive is an understatement, really.”
“When we went up with the 2024 shows, we believed we had two shows that likely would sell out, but when all 100,000 tickets were gone in a matter of minutes, we had to do a third show to meet the demand”
Live Nation Denmark, the local market leader, hasn’t reverted to domestic talent wholesale, of course – its year has included Bruce Springsteen, J Balvin, P!nk, Metallica, and Morgan Wallen, albeit with retiring Danish ‘indie stadium’ chaps Mew among those cued up for 2025.
Superstruct-owned DTD Group, previously Down The Drain Group, is the second-biggest concert and festival organiser in Denmark, presiding over some of the nation’s biggest festivals – NorthSide in Aarhus, Tinderbox in Odense, and Fyrfest in Viborg – and promoting more than 100 shows a year.
For DTD, international remains strong – Interpol, Faithless, and Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds are all coming through in the coming months, and the festivals maintain a mix of local and international – but homegrown talent has been a big part of the recipe in 2024.
“It seems that people are really up for local talent these days”
Notable shows include a 47,000-cap Parken Stadium show in August for Danish hip-hop veterans Suspekt, a summer show on Refshaleøen island in Copenhagen harbour for returning hip-hop/R&B duo Ukendt Kunstner, and Royal Arenas in 2025 for rapper Kesi and anthemic folk-pop outfit Jonah Blacksmith.
The reason for the increasing parity in local vs international pulling power in recent years is hard to define. By many interpretations, Covid gave local artists space to develop, while others suggest high international fees and shifts in touring patterns are also playing a role.
“It seems that people are really up for local talent these days,” says DTD Group CEO Brian Nielsen. “Maybe it’s even a result of the decreasing number of international headline acts doing the festival circuit and doing their own arena shows – who knows? We see Danish talent having as big an impact as international headliners at our festivals, and that wasn’t the case a few years back.”
NorthSide put Ukendt Kunstner and singer-songwriter Andreas Odbjerg up amongst Massive Attack, Troye Sivan, The Smile, and others, while Tinderbox had Odbjerg and Jonah Blacksmith alongside Bryan Adams, Camila Cabello, and Lenny Kravitz. Having already gone 100% organic and plant- based in its food options, NorthSide also announced its intention to become climate-neutral.
“We see Danish talent having as big an impact as international headliners at our festivals, and that wasn’t the case a few years back.”
DTD is also behind a new ‘legends’ festival called Forever, which will take place in the historic barracks area in the heart of Viborg in June 2025. Roxette, Kool & the Gang, and the Human League are among the first wave of names. Clearly, when it’s retro legends you’re after, international remains the way to go.
The eight-day, 135,000-strong, non-profit Roskilde, tends to lead with international action – Doja Cat, 21 Savage, Foo Fighters, Skrillex, and SZA were among those heading the lineup this year – though Medina, Tems, Gobs, and ritual collective Heilung were among the Danish or part-Danish acts slightly further down on the bill.
Live Nation Denmark also launched Suset Festival this summer, which took place on the harbourside in the city of Esbjerg under the guidance of festival director Tobias Kippenberger, former frontman of Danish rock band The Floor Is Made Of Lava. The first edition featured a mainly domestic lineup including local hip-hop arena-fillers Nik & Jay, Andreas Odbjerg, and chart siren Medina.
“It has been a very busy year with a lot of great shows”
The Waterland Private Equity-backed, pan-European independent group All Things Live has its roots in Denmark, where ICO Concerts was a founding partner, and like others, All Things Live Denmark has had a strong 2024 to date.
“It has been a very busy year with a lot of great shows,” says the company’s CEO Pernille Møller Pedersen. “The highlight of the year for us was Rammstein at Valbyparken in Copenhagen on 5 July, with 50,000 tickets sold. Rammstein now holds the record for the biggest concert ever at the park.”
The FKP Scorpio-affiliated smash!bang!pow! organises and produces more than 300 concerts annually, from Ed Sheeran’s four shows at Copenhagen’s Øresundsparken next year to local talent club shows, and this year, it saw its second edition of the Syd for Solen festival in Søndermarken.
“The highlight of the year for us was Rammstein at Valbyparken in Copenhagen on 5 July, with 50,000 tickets sold. Rammstein now holds the record for the biggest concert ever at the park.”
Another busy promoter and producer is CSB Island Entertainment, founded in 1994 and 75% owned by DEAG since 2021, with founder and CEO Carsten Svoldgaard and his son Kenneth (COO) remaining at the helm and as shareholders.
Operating from the island of Fanø in the North Sea off Denmark’s southwest coast, CSB holds worldwide rights to productions including The Show – A Tribute to Abba, Queen Machine Symphonic, and Disco Tango Eurovision Show, and supplies international artists and bands to up to 100 festivals and open-airs in Denmark.
Arena Market: Denmark
Denmark’s natural bridging position between Scandinavia and the huge music market of Germany has given it many advantages in attracting tours.
The Øresund link has famously connected Sweden by land and birthed Scandi noir TV favourite The Bridge, and a new fixed link tunnel will connect Denmark straight to Germany under the Baltic in 4-5 years.
Danes’ extremely high standard of English means British and American bands do well here. But the country does not lose sight of its Nordic roots and hosts SPOT Festival in Aarhus to showcase the best in Scandinavian pop and upcoming dance and indie. Copenhagen is home to cool, historic clubs like Vega with storied reputations.
“The health of the live entertainment market in Denmark is good.”
Arena-wise Denmark boasts the likes of the Ceres Arena in Aarhus (19,443), the evocatively named Gigantium in Aalborg (8,500), the Jyske Bank Boxen in Herning (15,000), the Casa Arena in Horsens (10,400), and in the capital, the Forum (19,433), the Royal Arena (2,000-16,500), and K.B. Hallen (4,600).
“The health of the live entertainment market in Denmark is good. Obviously, Copenhagen is an attractive city for both international artists and fans, and thankfully, we have some competent promoters doing everything in their power to present some of the world’s greatest artists in Denmark,” comments Dan Hammer of the Royal Arena in the capital.
He adds: “The next 12-18 months are looking really solid for the arena, with an incredibly diverse range of artists on the books.” The Royal Arena opened in 2017 in the Ørestad South area and has hosted Metallica, UFC bouts, and ice hockey. Its recent and forthcoming roster looks healthy, including the likes of Olivia Rodrigo, Rod Stewart, and Billie Eilish.
“While the bounce back in ticket sales in 2023 was driven by festivals, stadiums, and major arena acts, 2024 has been defined by a strong comeback for mid-level tours”
Of course, Denmark has a strong economy with high costs and high wages. Ticket prices can afford to be on the higher side while punters earn high wages and are happy to spend on tickets. Danes are said to be the world’s happiest people and are big music lovers. Festivals like Roskilde and Copenhagen Jazz Festival put the country on the map every summer.
“The live entertainment market in Denmark continues to be strong and healthy,” says Kasper Busch Lund, CEO of K.B. Hallen. “While the bounce back in ticket sales in 2023 was driven by festivals, stadiums, and major arena acts, 2024 has been defined by a strong comeback for mid-level tours, both Danish and international, and both in terms of numbers and ticket sales. At K.B. Hallen, the legendary 4,600-capacity Copenhagen venue, the outlook for 2025 continues to be strong for both international acts and new Danish artists.”