U2 puts twelve European and UK stadium dates on sale for 2027

For buyers, the calendar is now fixed. The U2.com subscriber presale opens on 2 November, Visa cardholders get a presale on 4 November, an artist presale opens on 5 November and general sale follows on 6 November. For the touring business, it confirms that a band which spent 2023 and 2024 inside a Las Vegas venue is going back to open-air scale.

Twelve nights, seven cities

The European leg runs from 26 April to 6 July, taking in Stockholm, Paris, Lisbon, Amsterdam, London, Berlin and Milan. Stockholm's Strawberry Arena gets 26 and 28 April, and Paris's Stade de France 5 and 8 May. Amsterdam's Johan Cruijff ArenA has 5 and 6 June, with Milan's Stadio San Siro on 5 and 6 July. Lisbon on 27 May and Berlin on 30 June are single nights.

Wolf Alice support the UK and European dates.

The London shows fall on 18 and 19 June at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. LADbible reported that they will be U2's first UK performances since 2018, a gap of nine years. Contactmusic put the gap at eight years since the last stadium shows.

The Latin American leg sold out first

The tour was first announced on 15 October with six Latin American shows, all with Beck in support. The dates were Mexico City on 23 and 26 February, São Paulo on 10 and 12 March and Buenos Aires on 23 and 25 March. Those three cities were billed at the time as the band's only Latin American stops of 2027.

Demand changed that plan. After the initial dates sold out, five more were added: Mexico City on 28 February and 2 March, São Paulo on 14 and 16 March and Buenos Aires on 27 March. The Latin American run therefore grows from six dates to eleven, one fewer than the twelve now on sale in Europe and the UK.

Why stadiums again, and why now

The tour supports Carnaval De Luz, U2's 16th studio album, which arrives on 13 November and is the band's first album of new songs in nine years. The title track was co-written with Brian Eno and has an Anton Corbijn video shot in the California desert.

Carnaval De Luz carries 12 tracks and was produced by Jacknife Lee. Its closing track, Torn, is a duet with Dolly Parton, described in the album announcement as her final recorded vocal performance.

U2's previous stadium date came on 15 December 2019 at Mumbai's DY Patil Stadium, which closed The Joshua Tree Tour after almost three million fans. Between then and now came 40 shows at the Sphere in Las Vegas across 2023 and 2024.

Billboard described the Sphere run as a reimagining of 1991's Achtung Baby through an immersive, high-technology production. The album also brings in new collaborators: Martin Garrix co-wrote Glorify, and Ryan Tedder added production to Silencio.

One detail is disputed. Hits Daily Double and Spin both put the album on Interscope, while MNPR Magazine says Island Records.

What happens next

Spanish dates and a North American leg are expected in the coming weeks. A further 2028 leg is planned, and The Edge has said it will end in Ireland.

"We can't say too much about the next leg of The Greatest Show On Earth, we're still figuring it out, but what we can say is, we'll be wrapping it up in Ireland. There's nowhere else we'd want to be for that party."

Before the stadiums open, U2 play an intimate BBC Music show in central London on Tuesday 3 November at a venue that has not been named. The artist presale opens on Thursday 5 November at 10am local time, though the Lisbon date is excluded from it.

Ticket prices have not been announced; LADbible estimated £63 to £210 for standard seating and standing, based on the South American shows.