The Weeknd is one of the most popular R&B artists in the world right now. With hits like “Blinding Lights”, “Starboy”, and “Can’t Feel My Face”, he has amassed a huge global fanbase. Naturally, European fans are eager to know if Abel Tesfaye, aka The Weeknd, has any tour dates scheduled in Europe in the near future.
The Weeknd’s Recent Touring Activity
The Weeknd spent much of 2022 touring across North America for his After Hours Til Dawn stadium tour. The tour kicked off in July 2022 and ran through mid-September, encompassing over 40 dates. It was one of the biggest tours of the year.
During the North American leg of the After Hours Til Dawn tour, The Weeknd played massive stadium shows in cities like Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, Miami, Las Vegas, Vancouver, and more. He performed two nights at Toronto’s Rogers Centre and SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.
The European leg of the tour was set to follow in 2022, but ended up being postponed with new dates yet to be announced. This has left European fans wondering if and when The Weeknd will return to play shows across Europe.
Evidence That The Weeknd Will Tour Europe in 2023
There are several reasons to be optimistic that The Weeknd will mount a European tour leg sometime in 2023:
- The postponement of the 2022 European dates was announced as a postponement rather than a cancellation. This suggests the intention is still there to bring the After Hours Til Dawn tour to Europe once logistics are worked out.
- The Weeknd himself tweeted in July 2022: “Due to constraints of arenas and the demand for more shows I want to do something bigger and special for you which requires stadiums.” This implies he still wants to play Europe but needs bigger venues.
- The Weeknd has steadily built up his popularity as a live act in Europe over the past decade, headlining festivals and smaller venues. A stadium tour would be the next logical progression as his stardom continues to grow globally.
- The Weeknd’s record label and tour promoters certainly see Europe as a major market with huge potential still to be tapped into. They will want to promote his new music to European audiences.
- Stadium rock and pop tours have become increasingly popular over the last decade in Europe. Other major acts like Ed Sheeran, Coldplay, and U2 have proven you can be hugely successful touring stadiums across Europe.
The Weeknd and his team likely need more time to secure the right venues and plan routing, production, promotion and all the logistics for a successful European stadium tour. But all signs point to him wanting to tour there and capitalize on his current popularity.
Potential Hurdles to a 2023 Europe Tour
That said, there are also a few factors that could potentially hamper The Weeknd’s ability to tour Europe in 2023:
- Post-pandemic booking issues – There is huge competition for booking major stadium venues as bands begin touring at full scale again.
- Economic downturn – Rising inflation, the energy crisis and cost of living increases across Europe may impact willingness to buy concert tickets.
- Calendar availability – The Weeknd’s schedule may simply be too packed with other projects to allow time for a full European tour.
- Creative priorities – After years on the road, he may choose to take a break from touring large venues and focus more on studio work and different creative endeavors.
Stadium tours also come with high production costs, so The Weeknd’s team may be waiting for the ideal timing and venues that make the most economic sense for a large-scale European tour.
What Cities Might The Weeknd Tour in Europe?
If The Weeknd does announce a European stadium tour for 2023, which cities seem most likely to be on the itinerary? Based on where he’s played before and typical major tour routing, the following cities seem probable:
- London – The Weeknd has said Wembley Stadium would be his dream venue to headline in the UK.
- Manchester – One of the largest indoor arenas in Europe.
- Amsterdam – He performed here in 2018.
- Antwerp – This Belgian city has a large stadium venue.
- Copenhagen – Northern Europe seems an ideal market for The Weeknd to play.
- Stockholm – His melancholic style of R&B resonates well in Scandinavia.
- Oslo – Norway has very dedicated music fans who turn out in huge numbers for global pop and rock artists.
- Hamburg – A major metropolitan area ideal for big tours.
- Cologne – This West German city hosted his 2018 Europe tour.
- Berlin – He played two nights here on his 2018 tour.
- Munich – Huge stadium venue and major global tour stop.
- Paris – France is a major touring market and Paris is a city The Weeknd is overdue to play.
He would also likely play multiple shows in the larger markets like London, Paris, Amsterdam and Berlin to satisfy demand.
How Quickly Could 2023 Europe Tour Dates Sell Out?
If and when The Weeknd does announce a European stadium tour, it’s highly likely that tickets will sell out very quickly.
His enormous popularity coupled with limited availability of stadium venues means demand will far outstrip supply in most cities.
As an example, when The Weeknd tour played two nights at Dublin’s 3Arena in November 2022, tickets sold out in just minutes after going on general sale.
Ireland has a population of under 5 million people compared to the over 400 million people across Europe. This gives a sense of how intense demand will be to get tickets to his shows in major hubs like London, Paris and Amsterdam.
It’s quite possible his European tour dates could sell out as quickly as within minutes or hours once they go on sale.
Superfans will likely try to acquire tickets through presales and VIP packages to secure the best chance of getting seats. It will be very difficult for casual listeners to acquire tickets later on general sale.
How Much Are Tickets Likely to Cost?
Pricing for The Weeknd’s 2023 Europe stadium tour tickets are still speculative since dates, cities and venues haven’t been formally announced yet.
However, looking at pricing for his recent North America After Hours Til Dawn stadium tour can give a strong indication:
| City | Venue | Cheapest Ticket Price |
|---|---|---|
| Vancouver | BC Place | $49.50 CAD (~$35 USD) |
| Philadelphia | Lincoln Financial Field | $29.50 USD |
| Gillette | Gillette Stadium | $29.50 USD |
| Chicago | Soldier Field | $39.50 USD |
| Los Angeles | SoFi Stadium | $49.50 USD |
So we can see that even the cheap seats have cost around $30 USD for his North American tour. This aligns with typical pricing for top tier global pop/rock tours from artists like Elton John, Ed Sheeran and Drake over the past year.
It’s likely that The Weeknd’s cheapest tickets for Europe will start between 30-50 Euros. Expensive floor seats, VIP packages and platinum-priced dynamic tickets will cost several hundreds Euros when factoring in fees.
Overall prices are likely to be at the high end for concert tickets in Europe, reflecting The Weeknd’s current popularity and the likely short supply and huge demand.
How Quickly Will The Tour Sell Out Overall?
Predicting exactly how quickly The Weeknd’s 2023 European tour would sell out is tricky without knowing specific dates and cities.
However, we can again look at his After Hours Til Dawn North America tour for reference: most shows completely sold out within 1-3 days after going on sale.
Given that European stadium concerts are less frequent than North American tours, demand is likely to be just as intense if not greater throughout Europe as fans leap at the rare opportunity.
It’s probable that at minimum, the major markets like London, Paris, Amsterdam and Berlin will sell out immediately. Even the smaller markets may sell out within hours or 1-3 days at most if he plays the right venues.
Overall, it’s reasonable to expect a full European tour to completely sell out within a week or less after the on-sale dates.
Superfans will snap up all the great seats right away. If you’re hoping to secure tickets, you’ll want to be vigilant and ready to buy from the moment they go on sale.
How Long Could The Weeknd Potentially Tour Across Europe?
There are essentially two touring models The Weeknd could take to covering the European continent:
- A shorter 1-2 month summer stadium tour hitting the major markets.
- A lengthier 4-6 month global tour more similar to Coldplay or U2 covering both major cities and secondary markets across Europe.
The advantage of a short summer tour is it focuses on fewer cities but with multiple dates in each one. This model works well for major headliners wanting to play only stadium venues in Europe.
Bands like Guns N’ Roses and The Rolling Stones have toured Europe this way in recent years. It allows them to hit places like London, Munich and Paris for 2-4 nights each.
The downside is less geographic coverage across Europe. Markets like Eastern Europe, Greece, Turkey and parts of Scandinavia may get skipped.
A longer tour provides more extensive coverage hitting both the major hubs and smaller cities across Europe over 4-6 months. Recent models for this approach include Ed Sheeran, U2, and Coldplay’s tours.
The Weeknd may want to adopt either model depending on his schedule. A short summer tour seems plausible focusing on Western Europe. But a longer tour could significantly grow his markets across Europe.
How Much Revenue Could The Weeknd Generate From a Europe Stadium Tour?
Exact tour revenue projections are impossible without confirmed dates or ticket pricing. However, we can make an educated estimate based on comparable recent stadium tours.
As an example, Ed Sheeran grossed over $432 million from his 14 month Divide Tour which covered stadiums across Europe in 2018.
Sheeran played 42 shows across Europe on this tour, averaging total gross revenue around $10 million per city.
The Weeknd is arguably an even bigger global superstar right now compared to where Sheeran was in 2018. It’s realistic to estimate his average European stadium show could generate $10-15 million in gross ticket sales.
If The Weeknd played 25-30 shows across Europe’s major markets, total gross tour revenue would likely range from $250 million to $450 million.
Net revenue would be lower after subtracting expenses like production, promotion costs, venue fees and personnel. But a European stadium tour seems very likely to be one of the highest-grossing tours of 2023 worldwide.
The Weeknd has the potential to join other top-grossing tours of all time in Europe like U2, Guns N’ Roses, Coldplay and Rolling Stones if he undertakes a comprehensive stadium concert schedule.
How Might COVID-19 Affect The Weeknd’s Ability to Tour?
The COVID-19 pandemic threw the live music industry into disarray over the past two years. Even now as concerts have largely returned, there remains ongoing risk of new variants or infection waves impacting touring schedules.
So far major European tours like Harry Styles and Lady Gaga have successfully taken place during 2022. This is a positive sign for The Weeknd returning to the region.
However, if new restrictions emerged such as limits on large gatherings or bans on mass events, this could derail plans for a European stadium tour.
The Weeknd himself has already had to postpone major touring plans multiple times due to the pandemic. This remains a lingering risk factor.
Ultimately the best case would be if high vaccination rates and updated healthcare protocols make it safer for European stadium shows to go ahead smoothly without major hiccups.
But until COVID-19 is fully contained globally, it will hang like a shadow over all touring schedules and plans.
Could The European Tour Expand Beyond Europe?
When looking at other recent global tours, many artists combine a core set of European dates with additional shows in surrounding regions.
For example, Coldplay’s recent Music of the Spheres World Tour incorporated South America, North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East into one continuous global trek.
Ed Sheeran similarly complemented his Europe stadium dates with shows in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, North America and Latin America over 14 months.
The Weeknd could adopt a similar model, making his Europe dates part of a larger global tour in 2023 spanning 6 or more regions.
Some potential additional tour markets outside Europe could include:
- Israel & United Arab Emirates – Growing touring markets where The Weeknd is very popular in.
- South Africa – Untapped audience and touring opportunity.
- Mexico & Brazil – Major markets in Latin America.
- Australia & New Zealand – Logical extension from Asia with huge touring demand.
- Southeast Asia – Cities like Jakarta, Bangkok, Singapore, Manila and Seoul.
Expanding to these other markets could make The Weeknd’s tour a truly global experience over most of 2023 and early 2024.
It would allow him to continue reaching new audiences and cement his status as a worldwide pop phenom capable of headlining stadiums anywhere.
Conclusion
In conclusion, while The Weeknd’s European tour plans remain unconfirmed at this time, all signs point to him likely announcing dates across Europe’s major stadiums sometime in 2023.
He clearly has the appetite and ambition to undertake this scale of global tour after his massively successful North American run. And demand amongst European fans to see him live is higher now than ever before in his career.
Timing is still up in the air depending on venue availability, industry-wide touring schedules and potential COVID-related factors. But The Weeknd hitting the road in Europe again feels like an inevitability given his current popularity.
When he does finally return to Europe, expect immediate sell-outs across all major markets within hours or days at most. It should easily be one of the highest-grossing and most anticipated tours anywhere in the world for 2023.
The Weeknd’s combination of global chart success and growing reputation as a spectacular live performer means European stadiums will be clamoring to host him.
Now it’s just a matter of letting the anticipation continue building as European fans eagerly await final word on when and where they can see The Weeknd’s next chapter of live magic unfold on their home soil.
