Oasis fans struggle as tickets for reunion tour nearly sold out
Millions of Oasis fans queued online early Saturday to buy tickets for the British legends' hotly-anticipated reunion tour next year, but many were left frustrated after booking websites appeared overwhelmed.
The chaotic scramble for tickets follows the announcement Tuesday that brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher had ended their infamous 15-year feud and were reuniting the 1990s-founded band for the tour.
Tickets for 15 UK concerts next July and August -- kicking off what has been billed as a worldwide tour -- were expected to sell out within minutes of going on sale at 9:00 am (0800 GMT).
Two mid-August gigs in Ireland's capital Dublin also went on sale an hour earlier -- and by early afternoon had sold out, according to Ticketmaster's Irish website.
Fans in both countries reported struggling for hours to access tickets, with hundreds of thousands left in online queues for different dates -- or just to join the official waiting list.
Others were unable to even access one of the websites selling them, and were instead greeted with an error message.
Meanwhile Ticketmaster's UK and Irish websites seemed overloaded as millions tried to access tickets, with some buyers unable to complete purchases even after completing lengthy queues.
An AFP reporter at the final stage of the purchase process after waiting online for several hours was abruptly dumped to the back of the queue for one date, behind nearly 200,000 others.
- Memes -
By mid-afternoon, Ticketmaster's website said "inventory is now limited", with more affordable ticket options for dates sold out.
A spokesperson said "millions of fans are accessing our site so have been placed in a queue" but insisted that it was "moving along" and the site had not crashed.
Exasperated fans were unimpressed, with social media full of memes and mockery.
"Unfortunately, Oasis have split up while you were in the queue," joked one X account.
"Can we just go back to the old days of queuing outside the record shop or gig venue to buy tickets please?" said another.
Some lucky fans snagged a small number of tickets in a Friday pre-sale, after success in a heavily oversubscribed ballot.
But some of those tickets promptly appeared on resale sites at heavily inflated prices, some as high as £6,000 ($7,875).
That prompted Oasis to warn on X that "tickets sold in breach of the terms and conditions will be cancelled".
The group behind hit songs including "Wonderwall", "Don't Look Back In Anger" and "Champagne Supernova" will stage 17 gigs in Cardiff, Manchester, London, Edinburgh and Dublin.
The eagerly-awaited Tuesday announcement also promised concerts in "continents outside of Europe later next year".
Tickets for their UK events started at around £75 ($98), rising to around £150 for standing in front of the stage.
The most expensive at London's Wembley stadium -- which include extras such as a pre-show party -- cost buyers more than £500.
- 'Spark' -
Formed in Manchester, northwest England, in 1991, Oasis helped create the Britpop era of that decade, enjoying a fierce rivalry with London band Blur.
The Gallagher brothers became notorious for their public fights, which came to a head at a 2009 Paris festival, when Liam broke one of Noel's guitars.
That was the last time they played together, although each has regularly performed the group's hits to sold-out crowds.
The reunion tour will take place 30 years after Oasis's 1995 album "(What's the Story) Morning Glory?", which received international critical and commercial acclaim.
It will kick off over two nights at the Principality Stadium in the Welsh capital Cardiff from July 4, 2025, followed a week later by five gigs at Heaton Park in their hometown, Manchester.
Oasis will then play Wembley -- on July 25, 26 and 30 as well as August 2 and 3 -- before three nights at Murrayfield Stadium in the Scottish capital Edinburgh, on August 8, 9 and 12.
Two more performances at Dublin's Croke Park in mid-August are scheduled.
The band has promised sets "full of wall-to-wall classics", showcasing the "charisma, spark and intensity that only comes when Liam and Noel Gallagher are on-stage together".
British hoteliers and pub owners are among those hoping for a boom in business, akin to the economic boost in numerous places prompted by Taylor Swift's recent tour.
L.Aitken--RTC
