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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Business
Michael Hann

Sellout or washout: will the boom in huge outdoor concerts be sustained after Oasis?

Beyoncé at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, part of her Cowboy Carter tour, June 2025
In demand … Beyoncé at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, part of her Cowboy Carter tour, June 2025. Photograph: Julian Dakdouk/PictureGroup/Shutterstock

From Lana Del Rey to Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar, the UK has already hosted a series of gigantic outdoor gigs this year. Having already played six Wembley Stadium shows on their Music of the Spheres tour in 2022, Coldplay are bringing it back for 10 more later this summer, plus two more in Hull. And now, here come Oasis, playing a total of 17 stadium concerts in Cardiff, Manchester, London and Edinburgh.

These are the kind of figures that get the music industry very excited. Last year, according to UK Music, 23.5m concertgoers spent a total of £10bn in the UK, supporting 72,000 jobs. “Artists are delivering spectacular performances, and there’s nothing like the feeling of being at a live show,” says Denis Desmond, UK and Ireland chair of the massive promoter Live Nation. “We’re seeing a real and sustained boom in outdoor shows, festivals and stadium concerts”.

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