Wembley, the largest stadium in the UK, had just as many concerts as football games in 2022. With 1.3 million tickets sold, there were 16 sold-out performances by artists like Coldplay and Ed Sheeran.
Tottenham Hotspur has exceeded its permit by adding an additional tour date at its stadium since the demand for Beyoncé’s 2023 tour is so high.
To make sure the event can go on, they must now file a planning request with Haringey Council. Stadium tours, which were first popularised by the Beatles in 1965, were formerly the domain of the biggest names in pop music, such as Michael Jackson, Madonna, and Eminem; however, in recent years, stadium tours have begun to overtake them as the most popular option for major tours in the UK.
“Why do musicians pick us?” “It’s a scalability issue,” says Sunderland AFC’s Steve Davidson, chief operating officer.
He continues, “The cost of putting on these massive international tours is immense, so they [artists] have to sell out bigger stadiums to make it pay.”
According to Mr. Davidson, the Stadium of Light has a capacity of 60,000 for a normal event, which has drawn performers like Beyoncé and Pink to the northeast of England this summer.
Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour stage, minus its runway and second smaller stage, is expected to be 174 feet broad and 84 feet long, according to internet predictions made by her followers.
Compare this to her previous arena tour in 2013, where the main stage was just slightly larger than the stadium-sized one she had anticipated—76 feet by 49 feet.
Since the stage would be excessively large, an arena would not have the space to accommodate all those trucks.
They have to move from one location to another rapidly, and Steve explains that this saves them money.
Liam Boylan, director of Wembley Stadium, argues that larger tours also carry more risks.
Live event planning and ticket sales are the responsibility of promoters. A particular artist’s popularity must be evaluated to determine if there will be enough people in the audience to fill the seats.
“Promoters will claim, “I’m going to guarantee you so much money,” but if a show doesn’t work, they’re responsible,” says Mr. Boylan.
