Grinding it out on tour is increasingly becoming less of a… grind. Ticket prices might be rising, but the number of dates is sharply contracting.

In October, the Music Venue Trust (MVT) reported that acts played on average 11 shows when touring the UK grassroots circuit in 2024. A decade earlier, it was an average of 13 shows; two decades ago, it was 18 shows; and three decades ago, it was 22.

“This has a huge knock-on effect in the programmes that venues can produce,” says Beverley Whitrick, COO of MVT. “But it is also having a massive effect on artists reaching only a fraction of the audiences [they could] as they try and build their careers.”

Towns and cities that were once part of the UK touring backbone are now becoming secondary or even tertiary markets. If acts are not playing these places, argues MVT, their small and mid-sized venues will atrophy.

Matt Hanner, booking agent and operations director at Runway, says, “Once you start cutting those cities out, it becomes quite hard to go back to them because your audience drifts a little bit. You’re not investing in your audience.”

“More and more tours are in major markets only in the UK and Europe”

The net result is a kind of pattern baldness affecting the touring map. Tours might only reach Glasgow and class that as “covering” Scotland or may even treat Bristol as “close enough” to Wales. Scott Kennedy, promoter at DHP Family, says that many tours he puts together now are “three-date UK tours that are just key cities” – often London, Manchester, and Glasgow.

Alex Bruford, founder and MD of ATC Live, argues even the two-date tour is now becoming normalised. “The main album tour for Black Pumas consisted of two shows in the UK – the Eventim Apollo in London and the O2 Victoria Warehouse in Manchester,” he says. “More and more tours are in major markets only in the UK and Europe.”

The major factor here is, he says, that much of touring is uneconomical and tour support from record labels is increasingly pared back. “We routed a short UK and European tour for a US artist returning after a successful debut album campaign,” he says, by way of example. “The tour was in 500–1,500-cap venues and just 15 shows long, but the initial budget, with minimal crew and production, showed a loss of $50,000, which is impossible for an artist at this level to bear.”

Acts increasingly have to absorb losses over a number of tours. “It’s very difficult to build a long-term touring footprint without going to play in as many cities as you can,” says Bruford. “The artists I work with who keep coming back to tour and include new markets every time are also the ones who are growing in popularity.”

“I’m talking to more artists now about doing tours in smaller blocks, trying to get them home in the middle”

Hanner believes month-long tours are still possible and can support venues and cities that are off the main touring map but this will often involve working with a patchwork of local promoters. “There might be 20 different dates,” he says, “and it might be 20 different promoters.” A key issue here, he feels, is that bigger promoters are much more cautious in their bookings. “They are just being very, you could say, prudent and risk-averse in terms of how they’re approaching these things.”

Within all this is a semantic debate about what now constitutes a “tour.” A run of consecutive days, with occasional breaks? Or measured out in stages, with shorter bursts of activity and longer gaps between them? “I’m talking to more artists now about doing tours in smaller blocks, trying to get them home in the middle and avoiding Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday,” explains Hanner.

This is increasingly the only option for smaller acts who are running full-time or part-time jobs alongside their music career and who cannot take weeks or months off to tour. “With an eight-day tour, you might now look at breaking that up into two runs of Wednesday to Saturday or Thursday to Sunday so they can get home,” says Hanner. “These blocks of time are more cost-effective because you haven’t got off days in the middle where you’re still having to pay for accommodation and van hire.”

“I think people are really focusing on just sticking very strictly to mainland Europe”

The industry is also more keenly aware of acts’ mental health and wants to avoid putting them on the road for long periods of time where they are running on a tight budget and existing hand to mouth. “All of a sudden, it’s gone from something you’ve dreamt of doing to being the tour from hell because you’re all absolutely shattered,” cautions Hanner.

This is a point Kennedy concurs with, suggesting long tours and mounting debts can quickly take their toll on acts. “That’s probably one of the main reasons why bands end up having to quit,” he says. Kennedy points to the DIY punk scene in Germany that can offer a model the UK should look to replicate. A network of small venues in Germany provides a flat or room with bunk beds that touring acts can use, thus lowering their accommodation costs.

There is an additional force at play here in Europe where more and more markets are being sidelined because acts cannot afford to get there. Aino-Maria Paasivirta, head promoter at Fullsteam Agency in Finland, says Finland was never a priority market for many acts until they got to a certain level, but now the Nordics as a whole are being deprioritised. “Historically, it’s been that tours have ended in Stockholm, and Finland has always been a little jealous of that,” she says. “But now I’m hearing that not even Stockholm gets all the shows. I think people are really focusing on just sticking very strictly to mainland Europe.”

She caveats that metal and hard rock bands have always prioritised Finland. “It’s coded in the DNA of those genres that touring and live music are the way to experience that music. If you don’t have a fanbase that gets to see you live, you don’t really exist in the same way as you can with pop music.”

“We’re losing money until we’re at arena level”

Finland is not quite as sensitive to high ticket prices as other European markets but that could change. VAT on tickets increased from 10% to 14% at the start of January, and this is seen as a hammer blow against the live industry. Increased ticket prices could mean the small number of international acts that do tour Finland might not be able to tour there to the same extent.

Tom Schroeder, EVP of Wasserman Music in the UK, says developing acts are increasingly only playing Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, and Berlin on European tours, but often only three of those four. He says Amsterdam might be “a vibrant city and a strong ticket-selling market,” but the money is often not there until acts get to the larger venues.

“We would go there, and we would do a 250-cap show,” he explains. “We would then go back and do a 500-cap show, then a 750, then a 1,500, then a 5,000, and hopefully up to 12,000 and beyond. We would do every single step of that, but we can’t do that anymore. We’re losing money until we’re at arena level.”

Schroeder says the only way to do a city such as Amsterdam is to have a solid commitment from local promoters that the act can leapfrog their way up through the venue sizes. “There have been lots of discussions over the last two years about this,” he says, “We’ll come and do the 250 [cap venue], but you [the promoter] have to have a vision, and you have to have a marketing plan that would be to move on and skip the next steps and go to 1,500. If you can’t get us to those levels quickly, we can’t build in Europe. Certainly, with an overseas act, like an American act, they can’t make the budgets work at all.”

“Because it costs so much to put on a show these days, it only takes a couple of wrong dates to really put the whole tour negative”

There are also wider social and cultural shifts where younger audiences, traditionally the bedrock for new acts, are not going out to gigs as much as previous generations. This is partly down to financial concerns (the average UK student debt now is £44,940 according to Student Loans Company data acquired by the BBC in March 2024), but also the pandemic, which caused habitual shifts among young music fans where attending gigs is not the rite of passage it once was.

The harsh economics of touring are such that the longer the tour runs for, the higher the debt can become or the greater the risk of it going awry can become. “Because it costs so much to put on a show these days, it only takes a couple of wrong dates to really put the whole tour negative,” says Jon Collins, chief executive of LIVE. “That’s why they’re really sweating each decision and rationalising things down.”

There are things the industry feels can be done to help it grow and to de-risk the economics of touring. Collins says a key lobbying point for LIVE is to get the UK government to reduce the 20% VAT rate on tickets and move in line with much of Europe where the rate is at least half that. The body is also pushing the charitable LIVE Trust initiative to help key players here.

“The venue to host, the artist to play, and the promoter to take the risk to put it on are all under huge pressure at the moment”

“One of the key objectives for the LIVE Trust is going to be to enable artists to tour,” says Collins. “The venue to host, the artist to play, and the promoter to take the risk to put it on are all under huge pressure at the moment, particularly at the grassroots level. If we can provide support to each of them, that’s going to enable more activity.”

Alongside this, MVT is lobbying to try and get the new Labour government to reverse its recent budget decision where it plans to cut the 75% business rate relief for grassroots venues to 40% from April 2025. It estimates this will burden grassroots venues with £7m in additional premises taxes.

Schroeder argues, however, that the industry as a whole has to understand that touring – and therefore the length of tours undertaken – has changed. Looking at the average touring route 20 years ago and comparing it to today is not quite comparing like with like.

“The way artists used to be discovered is that they would go and play shows at grassroots venues, and they would build a fanbase like that,” he says. “That still happens, but at the same time, what an artist does on TikTok, on Instagram, and on Discord is also incredibly important. When they do a show, wherever it is in the world, that content on their socials gains fans, too. It’s not the same as it used to be.”

Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.

Lady Gaga has announced her first Mexico headline show in 13 years in support of her forthcoming album, Mayhem.

The superstar will return to Estadio GNP Seguros in Mexico City on the 26 April 2025, where she performed on The Born This Way Ball tour in 2012.

The stadium show – produced by Live Nation and OCESA – will take place a week prior to her free concert on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The 3 May show, which will mark Gaga’s first show in the country since 2012, will take place on a custom stage and be broadcast live on Brazilian TV.

Produced by promoter Bonus Track in partnership with Live Nation, the gig will be open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis for those arriving at Copacabana Beach near the Belmond Copacabana Palace Hotel on the day of the event.

Alanis Morissette has announced that she will be headlining London’s The O2 on Sunday 27 July

Billie Eilish, meanwhile, has set a new attendance record at Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena, owned by TEG and operated by ASM Global.

The American singer celebrated the end of her Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour by breaking the long-standing single event attendance record previously set by Justin Timberlake for the FutureSex/LoveShow Tour 18 years prior.

Approximately 21,000 fans attended Eilish’s 28 February 2025 show, eclipsing the previous mark of 20,839 held by Timberlake for the 13 November 2007 show. Three of her four nights at Qudos Bank Arena eclipsed the previous record.

In other news, Alanis Morissette has announced that she will be headlining London’s The O2 on Sunday 27 July – the final date on the European leg of her 2025 World Tour.

Morissette is set for a run of shows across the UK & Ireland this summer including Blackweir in Cardiff (2 July) where she is set to become the first artist to play Live Nation’s brand-new venue.

Slayer have announced their first UK performances in six years

Other dates include Dublins Malahide Castle (29 June), Belfast’s Ormeau Park (30 June), TK Maxx presents Lytham Festival (4 July), OVO Hydro Glasgow (5 July), London’s The O2 (27 July).

The iconic singer-songwriter will also deliver an eight-date residency at the Colosseum at Caesars in Las Vegas this October.

The Offspring have added a North America leg to their Supercharged Worldwide in ’25 Tour, which kicks off tomorrow (5 March) with a nine-date leg in South America.

Following that, the American rock band will perform four dates in Japan and six dates in Australia. The 34-date North America leg commences on 11 July and concludes on 7 September, and features special guests Jimmy Eat World and New Found Glory.

Meanwhile, Slayer have announced their first UK performances in six years, performing at London’s Finsbury Park on 6 July and Blackweir Fields in Cardiff on 3 July.

Amon Amarth, Anthrax, Mastodon, Hatebreed and Neckbreakker will join the band for their biggest-ever UK shows.

Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.

Fluctuations in currency exchange rates can have far-reaching consequences for international tours. Political instability, interest rates, inflation, and major governmental changes can all have a profound impact on the value of currency, the knock-on effect of which can affect the income of artists touring the world.

With a well-thought-out currency strategy, touring companies are able to mitigate such risks posed to their income and budgets. And to make sure that a touring party’s interests are as protected as possible, it’s important to take advice from professionals.

Freddy Greenish and Simon Liddell are the founders and directors of Chorus TM. A leading global payments and expense management platform specialising in the touring industry, they are experts in managing foreign exchange. Here they share thoughts on the 2025 currency landscape, as well as tips on managing foreign exchange at every step of the tour planning and recouping process.

“We have a unique insight into the foreign currency challenges faced by touring companies”

FOREIGN EXCHANGE
Foreign exchange (FX) is the world’s most traded investment market, and the currency exchange rate is the most important determinant of a country’s economic health. These rates move constantly as markets digest new information and react accordingly. The best way to measure a currency’s strength is over time, as economies become stronger and others weaken. For example, the British pound (GBP) has halved in value against the US dollar (USD) over the past 50 years.

There have been some big swings in currency exchange rates over the last few years. Brexit saw GBP lose 13% value, and Covid saw GBP lose 12% value against the USD in just two weeks. The result of this was that UK-based artists that had currency sitting in dollars were suddenly better off, but those needing to pay costs in USD saw their profit shrink or disappear. Such shifts in currency exchange rates have the potential to make or break a business, and with 30 years of experience in this industry, we have a unique insight into the foreign currency challenges faced by touring companies.

“USD has consistently been among the best performing currencies and is widely considered a safe haven currency”

CURRENCY RATES: ECONOMIC OUTLOOK FOR 2025

USD
2024 saw an “election supercycle” take place, with 77 countries around the world – representing half of the global population – going to the polls. Donald Trump’s win in last year’s US election also saw the Republicans gain control of the Senate and the House, therefore increasing his chances of implementing policies of lower taxes, deregulation, and protectionism. This will likely boost the value of the US dollar, which has consistently been among the best performing currencies and is widely considered a safe haven currency whose value retains or increases in times of uncertainty.

GBP
The British pound fared well in 2024, as economic growth proved to be stable, and UK interest rates remained high. In September, GBP was the best performing currency among the G10 of economically advanced nations; however, the autumn 2024 Labour budget and the start of this year have seen sterling drop significantly. Rachel Reeves’ mix of spending increases, high taxes on business, and extra borrowing for investment has concerned the market. The gilt market (the rate at which the British government can borrow money) has risen to highs not seen since 1998. To meet these increased costs, taxes will have to increase further or spending plans cut.

The outlook for 2025 is now uncertain, and further concerns for the prospect of stagflation are rising – meaning high inflation, low economic growth, and high unemployment. The Bank of England has downgraded its growth forecast, with fears over the status of the UK economy and job market. If the labour market data reflects business’s concerns and unemployment starts ticking up, the Bank of England will be forced to react. An aggressive monetary policy in 2025 could see quarterly interest rate cuts until the base rate hits 3.25% in 2026. Taking these all into consideration and lower relative interest rates will generally result in a weaker pound.

EUR
The European economy is far more vulnerable to trade policies imposed by the US than the UK, and the European Central Bank (ECB) has taken action to aggressively cut interest rates to support a weak economy. Structural issues in Germany and political instability in France will put further pressure on the euro throughout 2025, and the only way the ECB can react is by further cutting interest rates.

“Many current geopolitical challenges are unresolved, and all can have a huge impact on currency rates”

GEOPOLITICAL IMPACT
Many current geopolitical challenges are unresolved, and all can have a huge impact on currency rates. Peace and prosperity need to be promoted over economic uncertainty and aggression. As Israel’s war with Hamas continues and there are fears of other countries in the region becoming involved, the US could be forced to become more directly involved. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues although Trump has pledged to “solve” the conflict. That could mean withdrawing US backing if Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy doesn’t accept a ceasefire. This would no doubt reduce the intensity of the conflict substantially, but whether that would be a long-term solution to the problem is highly unlikely.

MANAGING FX EXPOSURE
Touring globally means considering and managing multiple currencies and understanding how revenue can be maximised while minimising costs. Although there is no perfect solution, artists and their teams can benefit from being proactive rather than reactive when it comes to foreign exchange, and there are a number of ways to protect touring operations against the potential impact of unknown factors.

When preparing for a tour or project that will be exposed to foreign currency, we recommend speaking to an FX expert at the earliest opportunity. Once an account is open, and for no fee, we can help – from the early days of budgeting and pricing up a tour to looking at the best way to manage currency cash flows.

We like to look at historical charts and trends for the 3, 6, and 12 months preceding the touring period, which can give us an idea of general trends and allows us to look at potential levels where currency rates will meet resistance and support. We can then work with our clients by targeting specific rates.

“We would always recommend using forward contracts to lock a rate for a future cost or fee”

Get paid in local currency. This gives you control as to how much you want to exchange and when. It also lets you go to the market to receive a rate that you’re happy with, rather than having a poor rate imposed on you. Being paid in local currency allows you to net off income against costs and to avoid converting currency twice.

We would always recommend using forward contracts to lock a rate for a future cost or fee. Forwards are used to mitigate currency risk so that artists and teams can undertake touring activities without fear of the currency moving against them. It might be the case that at the end of the tour, the rate has moved in your favour – but equally, it can move in the other direction, and the effects of this need to be considered.

Technology continues to grow at pace and that’s particularly relevant in financial services. Speaking to bots and not being able to speak to a human can cost you money and also add a huge amount of frustration. Cutting-edge technology and great service do not have to be mutually exclusive, so we’d advise you to work with companies that provide both: a platform where you can access everything yourself but where you also have the support of a designated account manager and dealer that can be called directly when needed.

The Touring Business Handbook 2025 is out now.

Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.

Bulgaria’s FEST Team has shared ambitions to offer full-service tours of Eastern Europe following the firm’s acquisition of Charmenko, which closed this week.

FEST Team is a Sofia-based full-service promoter, founded in 2012, that organises festivals such as the biggest rock and metal festival in Bulgaria, Hills of Rock Festival, with headliners such as Korn, Slipknot, Bring Me The Horizon, the Sofia Solid series, and Spice Music Festival. The firm has also promoted concerts with the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Ed Sheeran, Andrea Bocelli, Guns ‘n Roses, Robbie Williams, Rod Steward, Iron Maiden and more.

Founded in the late 1980s, Istanbul-headquartered Charmenko is an Eastern European promoter, talent buyer and artist agency, with staff and offices in Poland, Czechia & Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia and Serbia.

While the two firms previously maintained a co-promoting partnership in the Baltic States and Bulgaria, FEST Team CEO Stefan Elenkov hopes the acquisition will transform Eastern Europe’s touring offering.

“This [kind of tour] can create revenue potential similar to a Central European tour with the same or bigger profits”

“Our goal over the next two to three years is to establish a solid and well-structured network for mini-tours for developing or new artists across Eastern Europe together with our current partners,” Elenkov tells IQ. “But this goes beyond just booking artists – we aim to provide a full-service package, covering everything from production – staging, lighting, and sound, backstage services, logistics, ticketing and marketing. FEST Team prides itself on being a 360-degree company that can facilitate these tours seamlessly, while Charmenko will open the right doors with agents and talent buyers.

“We want to sit at the table with agents and our partners and present a structured, well-organised touring model, offering, for example, a 10-city circuit across Eastern Europe within two to three weeks. This can create revenue potential similar to a Central European tour with significantly optimised costs with the same or bigger profits.”

Elenkov argues that optimised production and logistical costs in Eastern Europe mean that profit margins for touring artists could be much bigger than in Western Europe.

“We’re not going to make any compromises, we are optimising the process. The quality of services here is the same as Western standards, at prices relevant to local reality. When you have in mind that artist fees and ticket prices in our region are comparable to Central and sometimes Western Europe, the potential for increased profits, especially in percentage-based deals, becomes clear.”

“I think we can develop our talent-buying work further in the wider region for festivals, self-promoting venues and indie promoters”

“Fest Team cannot compete with massive markets like Germany, France, or the UK, that’s not our aim. Instead, we want to position our region as a strong secondary touring market, capable of offering a competitive addition to Central Europe. Once we prove this model works, we believe more artists will see Eastern Europe as a must-visit touring destination.”

Charmenko’s founder and owner, Nick Hobbs, tells IQ the acquisition will also be beneficial for the firm’s talent-buying business, which operates on behalf of events, venues and concert organisers in Finland, the rest of the former Yugoslavia, Romania, Moldova, Greece & Cyprus, the Caucuses and Egypt, as well as the Baltic States and Bulgaria.

“I think we can develop our talent-buying work further in the wider region for festivals, self-promoting venues and independent promoters. I also feel that we can strengthen what we do as promoters and co-promoters, especially by focusing on what’s best for artist development, which isn’t always the highest offer in my view,” he tells IQ. “I expect us to further develop our own roster of artists, especially by focusing on talent from the less obvious parts of the globe, for whom Britain and North America are perhaps not primary international markets.”

Hobbs founded Charmenko in London in the 1980s before relocating to Istanbul in 2003. The firm later opened offices in Czechia and Poland (2004), Serbia (2018), and Croatia (2021).

It has promoted concerts with the likes of Ed Sheeran, Måneskin, The Chainsmokers, Arctic Monkeys, Marshmello, Rammstein, The National, Green Day, Die Antwoord, Central Cee, Franz Ferdinand, Sting, Tame Impala and Iron Maiden.

At the end of last year, FEST Team’s Elenkov told IQ that the Bulgarian market is open for international stadium shows. Read the full article here.

Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.

Greece’s international market is going from strength to strength, according to Ejekt Festival director Giannis Paltoglou.

Indeed, Paltoglou has landed Green Day’s first-ever performance in Greece, headlining the 20th anniversary of Ejekt this summer.

“If a new band comes to Greece and plays on the first record, they will keep coming back with every record because the Greek audience is really warm, and also the weather, the food and the hospitality are renowned,” Paltoglou explains. “But when bands are at the level of Green Day, it’s tough to convince them to visit because we are not a big market.

“We have around 5.1 million people living in Athens but we have a lot of tourists and the economy is much better than in previous years – that’s why we can afford to spend more money, increase ticket prices and bring bigger bands here. We’re growing up slowly.”

Green Day is the first act to be announced for the milestone edition of Ejekt, which will take place across three days in early July at Athens Olympic Stadium.

The festival moved to the 35,000-capacity stadium last year to facilitate the growing supply of – and demand for – international artists in Greece.

“The economy is much better now – that’s why we can afford to spend more money, increase ticket prices and bring bigger bands”

“It’s near to the train station, has better facilities for disabled people, more parking,” Paltoglou lists the benefits of the new venue. “And, of course, it has bigger infrastructure… it’s a stadium experience now.”

In another major coup, Paltoglou has secured Robbie Williams for a special, standalone performance at Panathenaic Stadium in Athens in October, under the Ejekt Festival banner.

“His tour is in October so we didn’t want him to perform during the festival’s normal days,” explains Paltoglou. “We wanted him in an iconic stadium with his production, not a greenfield.”

While Greek artists continue to dominate the market, demand for international stars has been increasing year on year according to Paltoglou.

“All the international shows we did last year were really good,” continues Paltoglou. “We had more than 78 international artists across our festivals and two venues in Athens.”

And it’s not just Ejekt Festival that is doing good business with overseas acts. “Over the 90 days of summer, we had almost two international shows from various promoters every day,” he claims. “People are thirsty for international acts.”

While Greece’s festivals are poised to supply the demand, the country’s touring circuit still has a way to go. Mid-size venues (with caps of 10-15,000) are sorely lacking, limiting the range of acts Greece could attract.

“All the international shows we did last year were really good”

“We don’t have any indoor venues at 3,000 capacity,” says Paltoglou. “The smallest arena is 6,000 capacity and then it jumps to 9,000 and then 16,000.”

“Also, the Acropolis Theater (4,100), a venue that has been operating every summer for the last 70 years, is closing for renovations until 2027. This will be a big loss for us. We have promoted many artists at the venue including Florence and the Machine, Herbie Hancock, Kraftwerk, Brian Eno and others.”

“We are waiting for some new venues to open, but nothing is happening. We’re discussing with the government, private companies and stadiums to see what they can do… it will slowly happen.”

In addition to a shortage of venues, Greece’s location in Europe has always been a hurdle for touring acts.

“We are at the bottom of Europe,” Paltoglou explains. “So a band from England needs a travelling day, one day to play, one day to leave. Logistics are tough for them and that’s why we try to collaborate with other markets like Bulgaria and Turkey and create a tour of the eastern Balkans to attract newer bands.

“We are doing a lot of shows there in Thessaloniki,” he adds. “But the economy is not as strong as in Athens – it doesn’t have as many tourists – so we can’t charge the same ticket prices.”

That said, Paltoglou is optimistic that Greece will continue to establish itself as a worthy market for international acts.

Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.

AEG Presents has installed Weston Hebert as vice president of global touring, based out of the firm’s Nashville offices.

Hebert joins the company from Live Nation, where he most recently served as talent buyer.

In his new role, Hebert’s responsibilities will include driving touring strategies and initiatives across the global market, reporting to president of global touring, Rich Schaefer.

“When Rich and I first spoke about this opportunity, I jumped at the chance to join the AEG Presents family,” says Hebert. “Rich and the global touring team have cultivated an exceptional sense of collaboration & community with the artists, managers & agents they work with. I’m excited to contribute to the ecosystem they’re fostering, which drives artist development & growth in all facets of the business.”

“We’ve been watching Weston’s development as a touring promoter from afar and have been impressed by his relationship”

Schaefer adds: “We’re very excited to welcome Weston to global touring, boosting our presence in Nashville. We’ve been watching Weston’s development as a touring promoter from afar and have been impressed by his relationships with the artist community, managers and agents and his impeccable taste in music. We’re looking forward to Weston being a significant contributor to our team.”

Hebert began his career in 2015 at WME Nashville, focusing on the international expansion of the agency’s country touring business.

In 2018, Weston joined Live Nation as a talent buyer in the Great Lakes region, overseeing bookings and programming at venues including Andrew J Brady Music Center, The ICON Festival Stage and Bogart’s & The Bluestone.

He also successfully booked and promoted tours for emerging artists such as The Red Clay Strays, Gavin Adcock, and Lawrence.

Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.

With massive tours from the likes of Coldplay, Oasis, Dua Lipa, AC/DC, Lana Del Rey, Shakira, Ed Sheeran and Guns N’Roses in the pipeline, 2025 promises to be the biggest year yet for stadium concerts.

Following a relatively quieter season in 2024 (in part, due to the Paris Olympics), Live Nation chief Michael Rapino declared that 2025 would be a “monster stadium year” – and it’s not hard to see why. While no single act is likely to come close to the financial might of Taylor Swift’s $2 billion-grossing The Eras Tour, the combined talent sitting at live music’s top table should more than make up for it.

Artists including Linkin Park, Imagine Dragons, Billy Joel, My Chemical Romance, Olivia Rodrigo, Robbie Williams, Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band, Kendrick Lamar & SZA, Stereophonics, System of a Down, Catfish and the Bottlemen, Stray Kids, Sam Fender and Iron Maiden are all set for next summer’s circuit. But despite the intense competition, demand remains strong.

“We can already see it with the various success stories and there are some more impressive tours to be announced,” AEG Presents SVP of international touring Simon Jones tells IQ. “Our stadium business has grown significantly over the past few years and we have some huge wins on the board for next year, which is very exciting.”

Like AEG, German-headquartered FKP Scorpio worked on the Swift and Sheeran tours. FKP announced additional dates for Sheeran’s 2025 European +–=÷× (Mathematics) Tour after selling more than 600,000 tickets in an hour.

“The live music industry in general is poised for significant growth in 2025”

“With stadium shows of Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift, our 2024 was surely something very special, but 2025 is shaping up to be very successful regardless – another set of well over 20 stadium shows with Ed Sheeran in Europe will continue our success in this area,” says FKP CEO Stephan Thanscheidt.

“The live music industry in general is poised for significant growth in 2025, and the stadium business will surely be no exception from this. This expansion is driven by increasing consumer demand for live experiences fuelled by flagship concerts and residencies of global superstars and the proliferation of large-scale events in general.”

Other recent case studies for the industry include Lana Del Rey shifting more than 300,000 tickets for her 2025 stadium tour, Dua Lipa’s first show at the 90,000-capacity Wembley Stadium in London selling out in five minutes and Shakira selling out 13 stadiums with nearly 700,000 tickets sold in less than two hours.

Demand for these mega concerts isn’t limited to the usual markets either – A-list artists are being pulled to all corners of the globe. Next year, Coldplay will perform their biggest-ever show at the 100,000-capacity Narendra Modi Stadium in India, Sheeran will become the first-ever international artist to perform in Bhutan and Guns N’ Roses will play their first-ever shows in Saudi Arabia, Georgia, Lithuania and Luxembourg.

Venues are evidently keen to capitalise on the demand. In the UK, Anfield, home to Liverpool Football Club, has been gradually increasing its live music programming since 2019 following a successful redevelopment.

In previous years the ground has hosted performances from the likes of Bon Jovi, Take That, Elton John and The Eagles but 2024 set a new benchmark for concerts. A three-night stand from Taylor Swift on The Eras Tour and two concerts from P!nk on her Summer Carnival Tour drew over 250,000 visitors to England’s fifth-largest stadium.

“To have the biggest solo artist in the world arriving for three nights at Anfield”

“To have the biggest solo artist in the world arriving for three nights at Anfield was amazing and exactly the type of event we wanted when we started concerts back in 2019,” says Phil Dutton, VP of ticketing and hospitality at Liverpool FC.

“This summer was a perfect opportunity to showcase what Anfield has to offer as a concert venue and we look forward to building on that again in 2025.”

With six concerts confirmed for the summer of 2025 – including Dua Lipa, Lana Del Rey, Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel – Anfield is gearing up for its biggest-ever year.

“Concerts are a very important part of the club’s strategy now. Anfield is an iconic stadium and we are keen to see it used throughout the year – not just for football but to host the world’s biggest artists,” Dutton adds.

“It is certainly something that a lot of venues are looking at more aggressively now. Since Covid it is clear that the music industry is on an upward curve so of course stadiums want to be part of that growth.”

Meanwhile, Liverpool’s city rivals Everton FC are currently building a new stadium that promises to provide “the very best visitor experience” for both football matches and concerts.

“Becoming a live music venue is a major component of our commercial strategy”

With the ability to host events between 5,000 capacity and 52,000, the Bramley-Moore Dock ground will be the biggest stadium to come on stream in the UK since Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, which has hosted acts such as Beyoncé, Lady Gaga and P!nk. Everton FC has similar ambitions for its live music offering.

“We want it to be recognised as a ‘must play’ venue by the world’s best sports stars and the biggest music artists,” Everton’s head of events Suzie​​​​ Parker‑Myers tells IQ. “Becoming a live music venue is a major component of our commercial strategy.

“Everton Stadium will be a unique event campus – no other stadium has a footprint that is so adaptable to such a wide spectrum of events. In addition to in-bowl concerts, The Plaza in front of the stadium is perfect for outdoor music events or civic gatherings and benefits from the amenities located on the ground level concourse.”

Further afield, the Philippines has pledged to build a ‘Taylor Swift-ready’ stadium by 2028, after missing out on the star’s juggernaut tour, while Bulgaria’s top promoter has declared the market is open for stadium shows and Mexico’s biggest promoter Ocesa has opened the world’s first purpose-built music stadium.

In terms of emerging markets for stadium tours, AEG’s Jones has his eye on Asia and the Middle East.

“If the timing is right and an artist has put the work in prior, stadiums are there for the taking in Asia,” he tells IQ. “There are some fabulous stadia on the continent and on top of that, some incredible new facilities are being built. In the Middle East, demand there increasing year on year so another stadium in the area would be very much welcomed. The thirst and appetite are there for people to buy tickets to see shows!”

“Ticket prices have increased in recent years, and people tend to spend more on the big shows”

So what can the growth of stadium concerts be attributed to and more importantly, what does it depend on?

“We’re seeing fans being more selective about what they spend their money on,” suggests Jones. “Ticket prices have increased in recent years, and people tend to spend more on the big shows, with the big presentations and wanting to see them in more comfortable surroundings. Fans love a spectacular stadium show and gradually we are seeing more artists reach stadium-level business, before some may have expected them to. It’s buoyant times and great to see.”

Thanscheidt puts the surge down to several factors. “Artists increasingly rely on live performances as a primary income source, audiences seek immersive experiences, and stadium concerts offer a unique atmosphere,” he says. “Technological advancements also play a role in their success because enhanced sound, visual technologies or stage design have improved the quality and excitement of large-venue performances significantly and offer new means of expression.”

Stadium tours have also become increasingly hot commodities in cities’ efforts to boost tourism and create an economic impact.

Earlier this year, it was reported that Singapore struck an exclusivity deal with Taylor Swift and her promoters to make the island nation her only Eras tour stop in Southeast Asia. Unsurprisingly, Singapore’s investment in Swift paid off, with the government later crediting live music with helping to rejuvenate tourism in Singapore.

In another high-profile case, it emerged that the Western Australian government paid A$8 million to subsidise two Coldplay concerts.

“Everything works in peaks and troughs, but this current stadium boom could well be here to stay as long as the value is there”

“Our concerts over the past five years have helped to boost the local economy by more than £31 million and also provided thousands of jobs for local people,” says Liverpool FC’s Dutton.

AEG’s Jones believes the upward trajectory of stadium shows will rely on the continued evolution of the venues.

“I’ve had the fortune of putting shows on in some of the world’s best stadiums and also others that have proved – shall we say – challenging when it comes to staging shows. The newer venues coming online that are thinking properly about dual usage, true fan and artist experience are where we will see the most success and enable this boom to be maintained.”

Indeed, the capability to host live music has become a top priority for stadiums wanting to play a bigger role in culture and generate new income streams.

Looking ahead, both FKP and AEG expect the global stadium concert market to maintain its growth trajectory into 2026 and 2027.

“Everything works in peaks and troughs, but this current stadium boom could well be here to stay as long as the value is there for people within the price they’re being asked to pay versus the comfortability, presentation quality and overall experience for ticket buyers,” says Jones.

Thanscheidt adds: “This outlook is supported by ongoing consumer demand and the continuous evolution of live event experiences. The advantages for artists speak for themselves, but let’s not forget one big caveat: We are only talking about a slice of the live business that is solely accessible to the biggest names in the industry. That’s why we will make sure to not lose our focus on artist development and other more intimate forms of live entertainment.”

Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.

The Covid effect has been credited for triggering a boom in the popularity of domestic acts in markets around Europe.

In one of the more positive legacies of the pandemic, homegrown talent stepped up to fill the void left by international artists, who were taken out of the touring equation for the best part of two years. And more than two years since the world opened up again, the shift looks to be sticking.

The trend is no more pronounced than in Scandinavia, where Swedish rapper Ant Wan performed the biggest hip-hop concert in the country’s history last month after selling in the region of 40,000 tickets for his Stockholm’s Tele2 Arena gig, promoted by FKP Scorpio Sweden.

Meanwhile, David Maloney of All Things Live Sweden pointed to the “amazing business” of the company’s tours with local acts such as Veronica Maggio, HammerFall and Evergrey.

“The domestic market in Sweden now is bigger than it’s ever been,” Maloney recently told IQ. “That’s something we are really concentrating on now.”

“We’ve seen a big change with Danish acts playing bigger venues than they used to”

In neighbouring Norway, recent All Things Live (ATL) shows have included Girl In Red and Sundfør at Oslo’s Spektrum – as well as 30th anniversary-celebrating Klovner I Kamp in Torshovdalen park in Oslo in August.

“Domestic artists are doing very well,” said ATL Group CEO Gry Mølleskog. “We have just sold 75,000 tickets for Åge Aleksandersen in Trondheim [at Lerkendal Stadion] next year. He is a legend – the whole of Norway loves him so much, and he is also playing big outdoor shows in several cities, including Oslo [Voldsløkka] and Bergen [Bergenhus Fortress].”

Mølleskog also highlights solo artists Ingebjørg Bratland and Odd Nordstoga, who joined forces again to play 120 concerts in Norway in the past year and have announced a Christmas tour, and veteran Sámi singer Mari Boine.

Elsewhere in Denmark, Brian Nielsen, CEO of DTD Group hailed the ascent of Aarhus-born Tobias Rahim, who topped Denmark’s singles charts for nearly 40 weeks with his second album, as “an Ed Sheeran-type story”. Rahim went on to headline Copenhagen’s 17,000-cap Royal Arena and land prominent slots at key Danish festivals Tinderbox, NorthSide and Roskilde.

“As a new artist, he went straight to arenas from airplay,” Nielsen told IQ. “With the way the audience is finding new music, primarily via streaming, the movement is so much faster. We’ve seen a big change with Danish acts playing bigger venues than they used to, and Tobias is a really strong example.”

“I don’t know if that hailed out of Covid, but the local scene is stronger than ever”

The fresh wave of Danish talent also includes artists such as D1MA, Andreas Odbjerg, Drew Sycamore, Blæst, and rappers including Gobs, TopGunn, and Lamin.

“It’s golden days for Danish artists coming up,” added smash!bang!pow! senior promoter Xenia Grigat. “I don’t know if that hailed out of Covid, but the local scene is stronger than ever. It doesn’t mean there isn’t room for international artists, but if you look at the top 20 tracks on radio or in the charts, it will probably be 80% Danish artists. And, of course, there is a high demand from festivals for those artists, but it also means that for [up and coming] Danish acts, there is a huge focus on trying to find the next big thing.”

In addition, Italian musician Gabry Ponte will become the first DJ to headline Milan’s 80,000-cap San Siro Stadium in June next year, with other domestic stadium artists including Vasco Rossi, Marco Mengoni, Elisa and Negramaro.

Spain has also produced homegrown stadium headliners such as Dellafuente, Aitana and Lola Índigo and Estopa, while the country’s best-selling tours last year were all by Spanish artists: Manuel Carrasco (365,652 tickets sold), Melendi (308,258) and Joaquín Sabina (253,809 tickets).

“Traditionally, promoters used to hire much more international artists, specifically Anglo-Saxon ones,” Concert Studio’s Carlos Pérez told IQ last year. “However, after the pandemic, the work of national artists is highly valued. In fact, they occupy a large part of the lineups of our festivals.”

“They are selling pretty well – like, 80% sold out in some cases”

Speaking earlier this year, Sara Kordek, creative director of Poland’s Good Taste Production, noted the company had 30 arena shows announced for domestic acts like Mrozu, Daria Zawiałow, Kwiat Jabłoni, and Ralph Kaminski.

“Last year, we were doing club tours with these artists, and then we put them on our Summer Sounds project, our travelling festival, and now we have announced arena tours for spring, and they are selling pretty well – like, 80% sold out in some cases,” said Kordek.

In Germany, Schlager singer Roland Kaiser drew more than 400,000 visitors to his 2024 shows, selling out 20 concerts including stadium shows in Leipzig, Cologne, Rostock and Hanover, while hip-hop stars such as Luciano, Apache 207, Kontra K and Bushido have risen to arena level.

Luciano will tour arenas in Cologne, Hanover, Hamburg, Munich, Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Berlin in late 2025, whereas Apache 207 concluded a 24-date tour of Germany, Austria and Switzerland earlier this year, hitting the biggest German arenas, typically for two to three nights each.

Pashanim, Ski Aggu, Luciano, and Apache 207 have all scored number one singles in Germany this year, while Luciano and Alligatoah have both released chart-topping albums.

“A lot of German hip-hop artists already have very good fanbases and a good market playing in Germany, Austria and Switzerland”

Promoters including DreamHaus, All Artists Agency, and Landstreicher Booking are among those to have nurtured the genre as it has exploded over the past decade, with DEAG going as far as to spin off its hip-hop booking division into a standalone brand called District Live. Led by Alexander Handwerker, it focuses on booking for up-and-coming hip-hop talent, and sold 70,000 tickets in its first year.

“Germany is also a very big market in itself,” added Neus López, head of export at German music funding institution Initiative Musik. “So a lot of German hip-hop artists already have very good fanbases and a good market playing in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.”

And French hip-hop acts are now selling tickets in France on a par with some of the biggest international acts. Local promoters suggest the country is the second-biggest market for hip-hop in the world after the US, driven by an especially vibrant local rap scene.

The domestic artist boom has been charted by IQ‘s regular market reports. Subscribers can read our latest edition, which focuses on Norway, here.

Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.

Linkin Park have added more than 50 shows to their From Zero World Tour, which continues in 2025.

The US rock band confirmed their comeback earlier this year, announcing new album From Zero (15 November), which will be their first since the passing of frontman Chester Bennington and features Emily Armstrong as frontwoman.

The six-piece made their live debut together with a run of six arena shows between September and November.

The From Zero World Tour will continue next year, hitting stadiums, arenas and festivals across North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America.

Starting in Mexico City on 31 January, the Live Nation-produced outing includes Linkin Park’s first stadium shows in Tokyo and Mexico City since 2017, as well as a return to Jakarta after 13 years.

The tour includes Linkin Park’s first stadium shows in Tokyo and Mexico City since 2017, as well as a return to Jakarta after 13 years

It also includes several notable festival appearances around the globe, including Sick New World (US), I-DAYS (IT), Novarock (AT), Rock For People (CZ), Rock Werchter (BE), Open’er (PL) and more.

Just one UK show is lined up, taking place at London’s Wembley Stadium on 28 June, and other European dates include stops in Paris, Frankfurt, Milan, Hannover, Arnhem and more.

Special guests for the extensive run of shows include Queens of the Stone Age, Spiritbox, AFI, Architects, Grandson, Jean Dawson, JPEGMAFIA, and PVRIS.

One of the biggest rock groups of the 21st century, Linkin Park has grossed over $120 million during their career, according to Billboard Boxscore.

In September, the band signed with John Marx, Josh Javor, Rob Markus, Ron Opaleski, Brian Cohen & Dvora Englefield of WME for touring.

FROM ZERO WORLD TOUR 2025

*Festival Performance

! With support from Queens of the Stone Age

$ With support from Spiritbox

= With support from AFI

~ With support from Architects

^ With support from grandson

# With support from Jean Dawson

& With support from JPEGMAFIA

+ With support from PVRIS

January 31, 2025 | Estadio GNP Seguros – Mexico City, MX =

February 3, 2025 | Estadio 3 de Marzo – Guadalajara, MX =

February 5, 2025 | Estadio Banorte – Monterrey, MX =

February 11, 2025 | Saitama Super Arena – Tokyo, JP

February 12, 2025 | Saitama Super Arena – Tokyo, JP

February 16, 2025 | Venue TBA – Jakarta, ID

April 12, 2025 | Sick New World Festival – Las Vegas, NV *

April 26, 2025 | Moody Center – Austin, TX ^

April 28, 2025 | BOK Center – Tulsa, OK ^

May 1, 2025 | Van Andel Arena – Grand Rapids, MI ^

May 3, 2025 | CFG Bank Arena – Baltimore, MD ^

May 6, 2025 | Lenovo Center – Raleigh, NC ^

May 8, 2025 | Bon Secours Wellness Arena – Greenville, SC ^

May 10, 2025 | Sonic Temple – Columbus, OH *

May 17, 2025 | Welcome to Rockville – Daytona, FL *

June 12, 2025 | Novarock Festival -Nickelsdorf, AT *

June 14, 2025 | Rock for People Festival – Hradec Kralove, CZ *

June 16, 2025 | Heinz-Von-Heiden Arena – Hannover, DE ~

June 18, 2025 | Olympiastadion – Berlin, DE ~

June 20, 2025 | Bernexpo – Bern, CH

June 24, 2025 | I-DAYS Festival – Milan, IT *

June 26, 2025 | Gelredome – Arnhem, NL $

June 28, 2025 | Wembley Stadium – London, UK $&

July 1, 2025 | Merkur Spiel Arena – Dusseldorf, DE ~&

July 3, 2025 | Rock Werchter Festival – Werchter, BE *

July 5, 2025 | Open’er Festival – Gdynia, PL *

July 8, 2025 | Deutsche Bank Park – Frankfurt, DE ~&

July 11, 2025 | Stade de France – Paris, FR

July 29, 2025 | Barclays Center – Brooklyn, NY+

August 1, 2025 | TD Garden – Boston, MA +

August 3, 2025 | Prudential Center – Newark, NJ +

August 6, 2025 | Bell Centre – Montreal, QC +

August 8, 2025 | Scotiabank Arena – Toronto, ON +

August 11, 2025 | United Center – Chicago, IL +

August 14, 2025 | Little Caesars Arena – Detroit, MI +

August 16, 2025 | Wells Fargo Center – Philadelphia, PA #

August 19, 2025 | PPG Paints Arena – Pittsburgh, PA #

August 21, 2025 | Bridgestone Arena – Nashville, TN #

August 23, 2025 | Enterprise Center – St. Louis, MO #

August 25, 2025 | Fiserv Forum – Milwaukee, WI #

August 27, 2025 | Target Center – Minneapolis, MN #

August 29, 2025 | CHI Health Center – Omaha, NE #

August 31, 2025 | T-Mobile Center – Kansas City, MO #

September 3, 2025 | Ball Arena – Denver, CO #

September 6, 2025 | Footprint Center – Phoenix, AZ #

September 13, 2025 | Dodger Stadium – Los Angeles, CA !&

September 15, 2025 | SAP Center – San Jose, CA &

September 17, 2025 | Golden 1 Center – Sacramento, CA &

September 19, 2025 | Moda Center – Portland, OR &

September 21, 2025 | Rogers Arena – Vancouver, BC &

September 24, 2025 | Climate Pledge Arena – Seattle, WA &

October 26, 2025 | Venue TBA – Bogota, CO

October 29, 2025 | Venue TBA – Lima, PE

November 1, 2025 | Venue TBA – Buenos Aires, AR

November 5, 2025 | Venue TBA – Santiago, CL

November 8, 2025 | Venue TBA – Rio de Janeiro, BR

November 10, 2025 | Venue TBA – São Paulo, BR

November 13, 2025 | Venue TBA – Brasilia, BR

November 15, 2025 | Venue TBA – Porto Alegre, BR

Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.

Arthur Fogel, Live Nation’s chairman of global music and president of global touring, has spoken to IQ’s Global Promoters Report 2024 about the evolution of the business.

Known for building the planet-spanning industry we see today, Fogel’s regular clients include Beyoncé, Sting, Madonna, Peter Gabriel, and Lady Gaga.

Having started his promoting career at a Toronto club called The Edge, he joined Michael Cohl’s Concert Productions International (CPI) in 1981. Just a few short years later, he was behind The Rolling Stones’ 1989 Steel Wheels Tour, which spanned 20 countries, grossed $170m, and became the biggest tour of all time (at the time).

Since then, he’s organised top-grossing tours such as Madonna’s 2008-2009 Sticky & Sweet Tour, U2’s 360° Tour from 2009-2011 and Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour in 2023. He was even involved with one of the game-changing shows of recent years – U2’s residency at The Sphere in Las Vegas.

Fogel shared his perspective on the future of global touring in an extensive interview with GPR editor James Drury.

“I think next year is going to be another banner year”

“We’re just on our way,” he says. “I don’t think we’ve hit a peak by any means. There are still other parts of the world to open up. There’s no end to the accessibility that people have to artists and music, and so I think that it will continue to develop and will get stronger than it currently is.

“If you look broadly over the period of coming out of Covid, I think what we’ve all seen is the development of multiple new genres and a new generation of fans, and it’s all led to a perfect storm of a very healthy business that shows no signs of slowing down. That’s great for all of us. Can it get a bit crowded at times in certain places? Yes. There’s certainly a very high volume of activity, but at the end of the day, I think that certainly the top end of the business has hit a level that I don’t think any of us could have imagined. It’s really quite astounding. It’s a testament to how our world has embraced live shows and the ease of which that can be accessed around the world.

“Last year, the stadium-level activity was unprecedented. This year, there’s been a bit of a decrease in terms of stadium volume, but the arena-level volume is extremely, extremely high. Looking to 2025, I think it will shift back to unprecedented levels of stadium business globally. But at the same time, I don’t really see the arena business falling back particularly, so I think next year is going to be another banner year.”

Fogel also shared his perspective on dynamic pricing, new touring territories and the top end of the business.

Read the full interview in the Global Promoters Report 2024, available in print, digitally, and on this dedicated year-round mini site. A preview version is below.

Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.