Stadium’s ticket sales ranking ‘impressive’

THE man in charge of Dunedin’s roofed stadium is ‘‘absolutely proud’’ after it came 13th in the world in when it comes to ticket sales for concerts.

Despite being an indoor stadium, Forsyth Barr Stadium placed 13th in trade magazine Pollstar’s list of the topselling outdoor stadium/festival sites in the world with a total of 131,597 tickets sold in the first half of this year.

It was one of two New Zealand venues to make the list.

Mt Smart Stadium, in Auck land, was eighth with 172,528 tickets sold.

Both venues outsold some famous stadiums, including Twickenham (40th) and Murrayfield (41st).

The stadium had a busy first half of the year which was dominated by three Ed Sheeran concerts.

It also hosted Robbie Williams and Roger Waters.

The second half of the year is also set to be a busy one.

Kendrick Lamar’s July gig is set to be followed by Pink and Shania Twain.

Dunedin Venues Management Ltd (DVML) chief executive Terry Davies said 13th was ‘‘impressive’’ for a small city like Dunedin.

‘‘We are absolutely proud we can mix it with the best around.’’

‘‘When you get an Ed Sheeran coming through that helps.

‘‘But, in saying that, we’re having a great 12 months and we have still got to finish that off with a couple of great shows,’’ Mr Davies said.

The stadium’s success was down to a combination of factors, but most importantly those living in Otago had shown great support and were continuing to go to concerts.

‘‘They [entertainers] are only going to come here if they can sell tickets.’’

DVML had also worked hard to build strong relationships with promoters, which was also important.

He believed Forsyth Barr Stadium would continue to attract top acts.

‘‘You never know what’s around the corner, but our track record is good.

‘‘We are selling tickets, promoters are happy with our performance and we will just keep putting our hand up.’’