Top 10 Biggest Concerts at the London 02 Arena

The London 02 Arena has been a host to one of the biggest music stars on the planet, making it one of the most popular concert venues in the world. The venue was established in 2007, with a 20,000 seating capacity is the second-highest seating capacity of any indoor venue in the United Kingdom. In recent years, the venue has been noted as the busiest music arena in the world in terms of ticket sales.

Recently the popular Nigerian music star, Davido shut down the Arena in a one-day music festival, prior to that his contemporary, Ayodeji Balogun popularly known as Wizkid held a three days music festival at the 02 Arena in 2021 after selling out the tickets in 2 minutes. In celebration of these African achievements, we’ve decided to compile the top 10 biggest concerts held at the London 02 Arena.

1. The Earth Tour: 21 Nights in London

The Earth Tour: 21 Nights in London was a 21-day sold-out concert at the London O2 arena headlined by American recording artist Prince. The concert commenced on the 1st of  August 2007 and was concluded on 21 September 2007. Making it the longest and biggest concert to have been held at the venue. The total audience attendance at the concerts was over 351,000.

2. The Return of the Spice Girls Tour

The Return of the Spice Girls Tour was a world concert tour by the British girl group the Spice Girls. The group began the tour with a 17-night sellout stand at London 02 Arena, with over 256,647 audiences in attendance.  The tickets were so high in demand that the first date sold out in only 38 seconds, while the sixteen additional dates were all sold out in 1 minute. The concert began on the 15th of  December 2007 and was concluded on the 22nd of January 2008, making it one of the biggest concerts held at the London 02 Arena.

3. The Circle Tour

As part of the circle tour in 2010, the American rock band Bon Jovi hosted a 12 sold-out night run at the London O2 Arena. The concert run began on the 7th of June 2010 with the band playing on the roof of the London 02 Arena, (making them the first band ever to do so) Around 1,500 people were there to see the amazing stunt on a large TV outside with a large PA system. Trained mountaineers helped the group to reach the top of the roof, which stands at 58 meters above the ground. The concert was concluded on the 26th of June in the same year.

4. To be Loved Tour

To Be Loved Tour was the fifth concert tour by Canadian singer Michael Bublé. Launched in support of his eighth studio album, To Be Loved (2013). The tour began on the 30th of June 2013, with a 10-day concert at the London O2 Arena, and ended on March 22, 2015, in Johannesburg. The tickets for all 10 nights were sold-out making it one of the biggest concerts held at the London 02 Arena.

5. The Beautiful World Tour 2007

The Beautiful World Tour 2007 was the sixth concert tour for the British pop group Take That. The tour ran from 11 October to 31 December 2007, with fifty stops in ten European countries. As part of the Tour, the group held a 9-day sold-out concert at the London 02 Arena. The concert was held from the 29th of November 2007  till the 8th of December 2007, an extra concert was held on the 31st o December the same year.

6. Take That 2015 Live Tour

Take that makes the list again, with another 9-day sold-out concert at the arena, the concert which was part of the III Tour(The band’s ninth concert tour) began on the 4th of June 2015 and was concluded on the 15th of June 2015. The demand for the tour led to all dates selling out as soon as they went on sale, with some dates selling out in pre-sale alone.

7. Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour

The legendary Pop star, Michael Jackson was scheduled to hold a 50-day concert at the arena, titled This Is It. He however died on 25 June, eighteen days before the first scheduled show. In tribute to the singer Cirque du Soleil, a Canadian entertainment company hosted a touring show titled Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour. As part of the tour, the company held an 8-day sold-out concert at the London 02 Arena, which commenced on the 12th of October, 2012, and ended on the 21st of October 2012.

8.  Greatest Hits Live Tour

The British pop group, Take That makes the list again with their 8-day concert in 2019, The concert commenced 2nd of may 2019 and ended on the 10th of May 2019. The concert was part of the Greatest Hits Live  Tour (also known as Odyssey Live and the 30th Anniversary Tour) which was the band’s eleventh concert tour in support of their greatest hits album, Odyssey (2018).

9. The Circus Starring Britney Spears

The American entertainer, Britney Spears makes the list with her 8 days circus tour at the London 02 Arena. The concert commenced on the 3rd of June 2009 and was concluded on the 14th of June the same year. Making it the 9th biggest concert of London 02 Arena with over 139,778 audiences in attendance.

10. KylieX2008

The Australian recording artist, Kylie Minogue concludes the list with her 7-day sold-out concert at the London 02 Arena  2008  which was part of her  KylieX2008, her tenth concert tour which began on 6th of May 2008 in Paris, France, at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy and concluded on 22 December 2008 in Melbourne, Australia, at the Rod Laver Arena. The show was recorded professionally during the performance on 2 August and was released as a DVD in December 2008.