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One stadium, two generations of headliners: Måneskin and Coldplay both performed multiple dates at San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, in the summer of 2023 – collectively selling out more than 370,000 tickets, and grossing almost $40,000,000. (Both pictures by Sergione Infuso/Corbis via Getty Images)
Business is still booming in the UK and Europe. That’s the clear message from the individuals running the companies on this year’s Magna Charta rankings, which are based on box-office reports from across the Atlantic submitted to Pollstar between Feb. 1, 2023, and Jan. 31, 2024. Steve Sayer, senior vice president and general manager of the world’s busiest arena, London’s O2, said, “2024 is shaping up nicely, building on a really strong 2023. We’re also hearing good things about 2025 at arena level. Lots of new music coming out and a number of big artists, and some new ones getting ready to tour again.”
Live Nation’s president EMEA, John Reid, said, “what we’re seeing is that fans are continuing to buy tickets – for their favourite local artist in their local venues, or festivals of all sizes, right through to Springsteen stadium shows. And there’s a great pipeline of artists coming through right now – we’ve got Melanie Martinez, Tyler Childers and Lainey Wilson all touring Europe this year.”
That’s in addition to the slew of blockbuster acts that’ll continue to fill stadiums in 2024. The packed schedules in UK and Europe are testament to the hard work all involved in this industry have been putting in ever since shows returned in 2022, despite the challenging economy in those markets.
Brian Cohen, partner and agent, international music, at WME summed it up perfectly: “Crossing the Atlantic is still attractive to artists looking to build their global brands. With that being said, between the rising costs of transportation, the impact of Brexit on the economic outlook, and fluctuations in demand from varying countries, it has of course become harder to do so. For European acts coming over to the U.S., I would say that there is more interest than ever before, however the rising visa costs have become a deterrence to some.”
Visa, taxes, carnets. It costs a lot of money and time just filling out the forms to tour the European continent, which eats into promoters’ margins. One source told Pollstar during Pollstar Live! 2024 that Beyoncé’s “Renaissance World Tour” generated more revenues on premium ticket sales in the U.S. than on the combined ticket sales in all of Europe. So, on paper it can look quite appealing to just focus on the U.S., where interstate travel is a much more streamlined process than crossing frontiers in Europe. According to Frithjof Pils, managing director of Eventim Live, “a strong act in the U.S. can fairly easily play 30 to 40 markets or venues. In Europe, perhaps 15 to 20 shows are feasible across several countries – and then you have to deal with all the complexities of different currencies, languages, etc.”
The reason artists still make the effort to route a European run, as well as visit other more exotic places that may be costly to get to, is that it pays off, most importantly the connection with new fans. And even if they didn’t make the effort, there’s a huge pool of local talent that is able to fill arenas and stadiums all over the UK and Europe. Pils said, “With international touring often in the spotlight, it’s easy to forget that in many countries 80%–90% of the live business is actually local repertoire, so that’s definitely one area we will continue to focus on.”
Another example is Italy, according to Pils, who said, “it was the first European market to really flourish after the pandemic, and it just keeps growing. There’s a vibrant scene, especially of local repertoire. We love being part of it – and CTS Eventim is currently building a new venue that will further strengthen the live entertainment landscape in the country.”
Semmel Concerts also had great success with its in-house productions “Abbamania the Show,” and “Disney in Concert” which “achieved Europe-wide success and set new standards,” according to CEO Dieter Semmelmann.
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