Source: AFP
Fans aren’t the only ones looking forward to next year’s Oasis reunion tour: British hoteliers and pub owners are looking forward to a boom in business, with hopes of a Taylor Swift-style boost to the economy.
Hotel room rates rose in host cities, including Oasis’ hometown of Manchester in northwest England, as soon as the tour dates were announced.
“It’s clear that the pull of live music is as strong as ever. Hotels will be booking up fast as fans secure tickets and pubs, bars and restaurants will be packed next summer with gig-goers,” Kate said. Nicholls, Chief Executive of UKHospitality, which represents the industry.
“We expect to see huge demand from fans, both from the UK and overseas, and this will no doubt provide a multi-million pound boost to the hospitality sector next year.”
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Warring brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher have put their 15-year feud behind them to reunite for the tour.
The Britpop duo behind hits such as “Wonderwall” and “Champagne Supernova” announced on Tuesday that they will play an initial 14 dates next year in Cardiff, Manchester, London, Edinburgh and the Irish capital, Dublin, starting the July 2025.
Furious fans have accused a Manchester hotel of canceling their bookings for the dates to rebook rooms at triple the price.
The hotel blamed a “technical fault”, but consumer body Which? stated that it is concerned about such practices and called on customers to be vigilant.
“Eye-popping prices are rising”
“Some accommodation providers will charge whatever they can get away with when a major event comes to town,” said Lisa Webb, consumer law expert at Who?, adding that some hotels had raised eye-watering prices ahead of the tour. .
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A fan in Manchester who lives near the city’s Heaton Park venue offered an innovative solution in a viral post on X.
She offered concertgoers a free camping spot in her garden in exchange for a ticket.
The tour looks set to “join the likes of Taylor Swift, Harry Styles and Beyoncé to deliver record-breaking shows,” UKHospitality’s Nicholls added.
The financial impact of the European leg of Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” — which wrapped up last week in London — far exceeded ticket sales.
British bank Barclays estimated in a study in May that Swift’s tour would inject nearly £1 billion ($1.3 billion) into the UK economy, with fans splurging on tickets, travel, accommodation and eating out .
Several economists also believed that the tour and related activities could have marginally boosted inflation.
Tuesday’s tour announcement delighted fans who had despaired of ever seeing brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher perform together again.
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Unsurprisingly, overwhelming demand led to three more dates being announced on Thursday.
The three extra gigs take the total announced so far for the UK and Ireland in 2025 to 17.
More on “continents outside of Europe later next year” are also expected according to a statement posted on the Oasis website.
£400m profit
Ticket prices were also revealed on Thursday with seated tickets costing around £75 and standing tickets costing around £150.
Ticket sales, merchandise and potential licensing for a film alone could bring in £400m, said Matt Grimes, a music industry researcher at Birmingham City University.
After accounting for costs and paying their teams, the Gallagher brothers could walk away with £50m each, he told AFP.
They won’t be the only ones to benefit.
“When a band like Oasis come to your town to play, you’ve got people coming. So hotels make money, public transport makes money, food outlets make money, licensed pubs make money,” he said.
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UK tickets go on sale on Saturday at 9:00am. (0800 GMT). “They’ll be gone before noon,” Grimes added.
“This will probably be a once-in-a-lifetime event, so people will find the money to buy the tickets.”
Source: AFP
