Taylor Swift fans hoping to buy tickets for her upcoming Eras tour have expressed frustration at presale tickets being advertised at hugely inflated prices within minutes of going on sale.
Nearly 40,000 people joined the online queue for tickets on Monday morning when tickets went on sale at 11am. Fans who preordered the US singer’s latest album, Midnights, from Swift’s official store were given early access, with tickets for London and Edinburgh on sale from Monday morning.
One fan expressed anger at London tickets being sold for more than £2,300 when “actual fans couldn’t get the tickets”, while another tweeted asked Ticketmaster on Twitter: “Can these people have their tickets cancelled?” in response to finding multiple tickets being sold for more than £900 within 15 minutes of the release.
On the ticket reselling site Viagogo on Monday afternoon, tickets for Swift’s June performances at Wembley Stadium were being offered for sale from £400 to £3,352, while resales for her Edinburgh tour dates started at £171 and peaked at £3,531. A since-deleted screenshot from the site showed a ticket being sold for £6,500, to the outrage of fans in the queue.
Prices for the Eras tour were already high, with a London general admission standing ticket costing about £110, and a standing ticket in the front row costing £172.25. Fans worldwide have already voiced anxiety about the high cost of tickets.
Frustration with people reselling tickets for extortionate prices has been felt beyond the UK and Ireland, with Singaporean fans finding VIP tickets being resold for as much as 16,000 Singaporean dollars (£9,250). This follows similar negative experiences in the US, where fans complained that genuine listeners could not get tickets; one tweeted: “I guarantee the scalpers who bought tickets have ZERO minutes of listening time and have never bought a single remix.”
Fans with disabilities also spoke of their disappointment with the sale. Some suggested they had experienced problems, with one describing the queue for access tickets as “a shitshow” in response to a tweet from another fan complaining that they had been unable to get through the queue despite joining at 11am.
@wembleystadium what is happening with the disabled access line?? Ive been trying nonstop since 11am and havent gotten through at all #TheErasTour
— rubeee (@rubyvbbbbbbb) July 10, 2023
“The fact disabled people have to go through this much for a concert is ridiculous. Do better,” tweeted one fan. “Apparently disabled fans aren’t welcome on #TheErasTour because nobody has managed to even get through to access tickets lines,” added another.
Other fans attempting to buy tickets reported technical issues with the website, with many complaining they had been unable to enter the Ticketmaster waiting room. One user shared a video of themselves being prevented from entering, while the account TheErasTourUK tweeted: “@TicketmasterCS Many users are experiencing issues joining the waiting room for the eras tour presale! When clicking ‘Join Waiting Room’ the page just refreshes and does not let you into the queue.”
There were also complaints about website crashes and people being ill-informed about having an obstructed view. Fans complained about Ticketmaster “randomly breaking down” as they attempted to make their purchase.
The official UK Ticketmaster Twitter account said: “ATTENTION: @taylorswift13 FANS. If you’re trying to access a presale please only use one device at a time. Close down all browsers/tabs, clear cookies and ensure you are following the correct presale link sent via email.”
The tickets went on sale with Swift’s rerecorded version of her third studio album Speak Now outselling the rest of the Top 10 combined, the Official Charts Company said. The release, which includes six unheard songs “from the vault”, marks the next stage of her ambitious rerecording of her back catalogue to regain control of her master recordings.
Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) sold 48,000 chart units over the weekend and would mark her 10th No 1 album, as well as extend her lead as the female solo artist with the second most No 1 albums in UK chart history – second only to Madonna, the Official Charts said.
The streaming platform Spotify also revealed the musician had broken records with the rereleased album. Its official Twitter account said: “On July 7 2023, Taylor Swift’s Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) became Spotify’s most-streamed album in a single day in 2023 and the most-streamed country album in a single day in Spotify history.”
