Some tickets for the highly anticipated Coldplay show in Abu Dhabi, originally priced at Dh995 for the Premium category, are now being resold for nearly Dh20,000 on unauthorised websites like Viagogo. This comes even as organisers issued stern warnings to concert goers ahead of the pre-sale of the tickets on Wednesday, September 25.
The Grammy Award-winning band was originally scheduled to one-night-only show on January 11, 2025, at Zayed Sports City Stadium, as part of their Music Of The Spheres World Tour 2025. Due to very high demand the band has now announced a second date at the same venue.
With some fans planning to travel from as far as Bahrain just to attend this exclusive show, UAE residents are scrambling to get a hold of their concert tickets.
Earlier, organisers in the country issued a warning about purchasing from unauthorised resellers. Official ticketing platform Ticketmaster made it clear that tickets purchased from unauthorised resellers such as Viagogo, Stubhub, Grinthub and Dubizzle are not valid for entry and "will be cancelled".
Purchasing tickets from authorised platforms will help avoid the risk of invalid or overpriced tickets — something that is already playing out in the UAE. The general admission standing ticket priced at Dh295 is now being resold for Dh1,849. The Dh695 Ruby category ticket is listed for Dh4,407 at Viagogo.
The same scene is playing out in India, where VIP tickets for the Coldplay concert are being sold for as much as Dh27,000 in Viagogo, a staggering 1,655 per cent increase from its original price of Dh1,537.48.
Even standard tickets, originally priced at Rs 2,500 (Dh109.82) are being resold for up to Rs15,000 (Dh 658.93) on reselling platforms like Viagogo and Gigsberg — a 500 per cent markup.
The problem of selling tickets at exorbitant prices isn't limited to just the websites either. Currently, in India, where tickets went on sale earlier this week, individuals who purchased VIP tickets for Rs35,000 (approximately Dh1,537) are attempting to resell them for as high as Rs300,000 (Dh13,178).
On its website, Ticketmaster further stated: "We can confiscate a ticket from you if you resell it or attempt to resell it."
Reselling tickets without written permission from organisers is illegal in the UAE.
