Ed Sheeran’s Divide Tour breaks U2 record for highest-grossing tour ever
Singer-songwriter thanked fans on his Instagram account ahead of homecoming show in Ipswich
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Your support makes all the difference.Ed Sheeran’s Divide tour is officially the biggest, most-attended and highest-grossing tour of all time after a performance in Hannover, Germany last night.
The British singer-songwriter thanked his fans after it was confirmed that he had broken a tour record set by U2.
By the final show he will have spent 893 days on the road, compared to the 760 days U2 toured.
“Thanks so much for each and every one of you who have come to a show. 12 shows left, will never forget it x,” Sheeran wrote.
Sheeran’s manager Stuart Camp said the achievement was “truly incredible”.
“I don’t think there’s much of a coincidence that my favourite band growing up was U2. I’m not putting us at that level because they’ve obviously maintained their career for much longer, but to even be in the same ballpark as them or spoken in the same sentence with a touring act like that is very humbling.”
Sheeran’s tour began in March 2017 and will conclude with a homecoming performance at Chantry Park in his local town of Ipswich on 26 August.
According to trade publication Pollstar, the Divide tour’s final show tally is 255, compared with U2’s 100 dates for their 360 Tour.
The number of shows Sheeran played was key to him breaking the attendance record, as he played to an average of 34,541 per show compared to U2’s 66,091.
He is currently enjoying a third week at the top of the UK album charts with No. 6 Collaborations Project, which features guest stars including 50 Cent, Bruno Mars, Justin Bieber, Chris Stapleton and Eminem. Read our critic’s review here.
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