Fans of the iconic rock band Oasis are going through a rollercoaster of emotions as they prepare for the group’s upcoming summer tour, set to kick off on July 4, 2025. The buzz, however, is somewhat mixed, with many fans expressing shock at the soaring ticket prices compared to what they once paid during the band’s heyday in the late 90s.
As nostalgia hits, fans are taking to platforms like Reddit to share their old concert ticket stubs from 1996, when Oasis was at the peak of their popularity. One user simply titled their post, "Oasis 1996 prices,” showcasing tickets from legendary shows at Maine Road and Cardiff International Arena. Reflecting sentiment of the time, there’s a stark contrast as some fans calculate that a ticket, priced at £34.50 in 1996, would equal that same value today – a realization that has some fans laughing at how far ticket prices have outpaced inflation.
"They’ve outpaced inflation by a lot then," one fan quipped, while another lamented that "£34.50 barely covers the Ticketmaster fees for the resale tickets!" Such sentiments are echoed by a wider community that lambasts the high pricing as simply outrageous.
The touring landscape has shifted dramatically in recent years. While artists formerly toured primarily to promote album releases, the roles seem to have reversed; now, they seem to rely on touring revenue as album sales dwindle. Thus, tickets for the 2025 Oasis tour are being listed with dynamic pricing strategies that have left fans reeling.
Reports indicate that some tickets for the upcoming concerts are priced at well over £148, with demand further driving prices as high as £348. Particularly troubling for fans are the resale variations listed on sites like Ticketmaster, where tickets have been seen for staggering sums: up to £648!
In light of these escalating prices, tensions are rising between musicians and ticket resellers. Legendary artists like Neil Young and The Cure's frontman Robert Smith have taken steps to counteract the trend of exorbitant ticket pricing, which they attribute to scalpers and resellers seeking profit at fans’ expense.
Smith made headlines recently when he stated, "I thought, 'We don't need to make all this money' You don't want to charge as much as the market will let you. If people save on the tickets, they buy beer or merch. There is goodwill; they will come back next time. It is a self-fulfilling good vibe and I don't understand why more people don't do it.”
Young, who will be headlining the Glastonbury Festival, plans to eliminate Platinum tickets at his shows altogether. "My management and agent have always tried to cover my back on the road, getting me the best deals they could. They have tried to protect me and the fans from scalpers who buy the best tickets and resell them at huge increases for their own profits," he explained. He expressed his discomfort in the concept of high-priced Platinum tickets, noting, "Ticketmaster's high priced Platinum tickets were introduced to the areas where scalpers were buying the most tickets for resale,” adding that he would prefer to let the market govern itself when it comes to ticket sales.
Currently, Oasis fans eyeing the remaining tour dates find “Official Platinum Tickets" listed for upwards of £560. This would equate to a considerable increase from the previous ticket averages of the 1990s, leaving many to wonder whether the nostalgia outweighs the bite in their wallets.
In summary, while the anticipation for the Oasis tour grows, so does the conversation around ticket pricing. Fans find themselves balancing a longing for the nostalgia of the '90s with the hard financial realities of today’s market. As they reminisce about the good times in concert and engage in current ticket discussions online, one thing is clear: the world of live music is changing, and rapidly so.
