Live Nation, from Vasco Rossi to Bruno Mars: the summer brings in 2.1 million paying attendees
CEO Roberto De Luca: “Outstanding performances from Ferro, Cremonini and Blasco. The international players have done well too, but this is the Italians’ summer”
“We’ve got three heavyweights in our line-up: Vasco Rossi, Tiziano Ferro and Cesare Cremonini. The summer of 2026 is all about them: between completed shows and tours still underway, they’ve sold something like 1.1 million tickets.” Speaking is Roberto De Luca, president of Live Nation Italia, the Italian arm of the global leader in the concert industry. The summer season has got off to a flying start for the group: “At the moment,” explains De Luca, “we have visibility through to July and can say with certainty that our summer is worth 2.1 million paying spectators.”
The contribution by ‘Blasco’ (11 dates currently scheduled across Rimini, Ferrara, Olbia, Bari, Ancona and Udine), by Ferro (12 dates currently running in Lignano, Milan, Turin, Bologna, Padua, Naples, Rome, Ancona, Bari and Messina) and Cremonini (whose tour concluded in Florence after stops in Gorizia, Rome, Milan and Imola), namely the specialists in stadiums and large open-air venues, account for the majority of total ticket sales ‘and if we broaden the discussion to include the other Italian acts in our stable’, from Tedua to Gabry Ponte, including Subsonica, “the proportion of Italian acts in total ticket sales becomes even more significant”, comments Marketing Director Marco Boraso.
“More generally,” De Luca points out, “we can see that the long-term post-lockdown surge in demand shows no sign of slowing down. The public continues to show significant support for live events, provided the offering is of high quality. If we add the figures for the first half of the year, which we are now leaving behind, to those from the summer, Live Nation Italia’s total ticket sales rise to 2.7 million.”
Positive feedback has also come from the group’s festivals. Firenze Rocks, which from 12 to 14 July saw Lenny Kravitz, Salmo, Robbie Williams and The Cure take to the stage at the Visarno Arena, “this year saw 70,000 paying attendees,” says De Luca, “whilst at I-Days Milano, Foo Fighters and System of a Down stood out.” If we add to these the two dates featuring Bruno Mars and the three featuring The Weeknd at San Siro, plus Bad Bunny at the La Maura Racecourse, ‘we reach a total of 400,000 tickets sold’.”
This magical moment for the sector is also reflected in a renewed interest from brands: Firenze Rocks, for example, has launched a naming sponsorship partnership this year with Opel, whilst the I-Days are renewing theirs with Coca-Cola. “Two highly satisfying partnerships,” explains Boraso. “Music is a powerful vehicle for reaching an audience. Fans of a particular genre naturally form a ‘community’ that identifies with shared values and passions. When brands communicate through an artist, they already know from the outset which audience they are addressing, without the need for overly in-depth market research.”
