A record 24.7 million “music tourists” travelled to UK concerts and festivals last year, spending an unprecedented £11.2 billion, and much of that money landed in the tills of small businesses far beyond the stadium gates.
The figures from industry body UK Music show attendance up 4.8 per cent on 2024, with total spending rising 11.3 per cent from £10 billion. The star turn was the Oasis reunion, the Gallagher brothers’ first shows in 15 years, alongside stadium runs from Coldplay, Beyoncé, Dua Lipa and Lana Del Rey.
For hoteliers, restaurateurs, taxi firms and independent traders, the detail is the story. Of the £11.2 billion, £5.7 billion was spent directly by fans on tickets, food and drink, merchandise, travel and accommodation. A further £5.5 billion flowed through the supply chain, from fencing and security contractors to restaurants stocking up for gig weekends.
The regional numbers show how a big tour can transform local trade. Oasis’s five nights at Manchester’s Heaton Park helped push music tourist spending in the North West up 15.6 per cent to £1.4 billion. In London, where the band played seven dates at Wembley, spending jumped 27.4 per cent to £3.4 billion. The boost echoes earlier forecasts that the tour would deliver a £940 million boost to the UK economy, with nearly 60 per cent of fan spending staying in host cities.
The overseas market is growing fastest. Foreign music tourists surged 26.8 per cent to 2.1 million, up from 1.6 million in 2024, helped by several major artists playing only UK dates in Europe last year. For businesses near venues, that means visitors who stay longer and spend more per head than domestic fans.
The sector now supports 74,000 full-time equivalent jobs, and the gig economy in its most literal sense has become a reliable driver of high street trade. Barclays data showed Oasis concerts helped lift UK card spending last summer, with entertainment purchases hitting their busiest day of the year.
UK Music chief executive Tom Kiehl said: “The billions spent are a huge shot in the arm for towns and cities right across the UK and benefit hotels, restaurants, bars and transport firms and thousands of other businesses.”
Ian Murray, the creative industries minister, said: “These record-breaking figures are a testament to what the UK’s music industry does better than anywhere else in the world.
“That’s why this government is committed to backing the entire music ecosystem in its upcoming plan for music: protecting fans from the exploitation of ticket touts, supporting the grassroots venues and studios that are the lifeblood of our future talent, and working to improve opportunities for UK artists to tour in Europe.”
The government has already moved on touts, announcing a ban on ticket resale above face value after the scandal over pricing for the Oasis run, the most profitable series of gigs in British history.
Yet the boom is unevenly spread. While stadiums sell out, grassroots venues are fighting for survival against rising energy bills, business rates and National Insurance costs, and 43 UK festivals were cancelled, postponed or closed entirely in 2025. For the small firms that depend on live music trade, the record year is welcome. Keeping the pipeline of future headliners alive may prove the harder gig.
