Live Nation has been playing "3-card Monty" with the announcement of dates and tour name. They know enough to proceed slowly with the order of onsale dates and 2nd shows. This can be seen as a shrewd business move or a crack in confidence. We'll know for sure in the next couple weeks. Live Nation value on the stock market is on the line as much as u2's perception/reality of concert drawing power.
This is typical of what U2 has done, and most artist do when they announce a tour of this size. Guess how many shows U2 put on sale for the ZOO TV outside Broadcast tour in the USA the first weekend? 2
Shows for Giants Stadium outside of New York City and RFK stadium in Washington DC were the only shows that went on sale the first weekend.
Your making a lot of hay out of nothing.
You mention the Swedish date selling more than twice as many tickets as 2005. Did you mention that it may possibly be the only Scandenavian visit on the entire 360 tour?
Well, when the Denmark show goes on sale in a few weeks, you'll be eating your words on that. Plus, they will be playing Helsinki Finland in the summer of 2010 and may in fact return to Sweden where I'm sure a third show would again sellout in record time.
While I do think the numbers in 2009-10 will be comparative to 2005 on both sides of the Atlantic but there is two lingering questions
They won't be comparative, their going to blow them out of the water. Take a look at the Milan show. Average ticket price on the last tour was $55 dollars, this tour its $110. With the seating capacity expanded at San Siro Stadium, they soldout the place in hours and now a second show has been added. Together, both shows will gross a combined $18 million dollars, far in excess of the two shows on the Vertigo Tour which did $7.5 million.
For the shows in Dublin, the average ticket price is $127, on the last tour it was $85. The band could potentially gross $12 million per show in Dublin. With three shows, thats a $36 million dollar gross. On the Vertigo tour, the three shows did $21 million dollars combined in gross.
-Will Americans eagerly travel to a 2009 gig if it's in a neighbouring major city?
For an eagerly anticipated tour like this, Americans always travel. In fact, there are some Americans that have to travel for all shows, because they live in more rural area's. There are some that won't of course, but the band won't need those people to sellout stadiums in Washington DC or Los Angeles.
-Have casual fans forgotten the sound issues of bad stadiums shows in the 80's & early 90's?
Most fans remember how great U2 stadium shows were from the 80s and 90s. I've seen U2 in football stadiums 8 times, and there was NEVER "bad sound" at any of the shows. I have had friends complain about the sound in the arena shows though.
Europeans seem to be tolerant of both, but Americans have arguably more sonically challenged venues and a more entitled society.
Well, its the Europeans that have public transportation to take them everywhere, and have typically had a lower average ticket price than US fans until this tour. Most Americans pay more and have to actually drive themselves to the show. Entitled society, I don't think so.