Live Nation Entertainment, Inc.
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ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Our Company
We believe that we are the largest live entertainment company in the world, connecting over 805 million fans across all of our concerts and ticketing platforms in 55 countries during 2025.
We believe we are the largest producer of live music concerts in the world, based on total fans that attend Live Nation events as compared to events of other promoters, connecting 159 million fans to over 11,000 artists at 55,000 events in 2025. Live Nation owns, operates, has exclusive booking rights for or has an equity interest in 460 venues globally, including House of Blues® music venues and prestigious locations such as The Fillmore® in San Francisco, Brooklyn Bowl® in New York City, the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles, the Moody Center© arena in Austin, the Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam, 3Arena in Dublin, Royal Arena in Copenhagen and Spark Arena in Auckland. We believe we are one of the world’s leading artist management companies based on the number of artists represented. Our artist management companies manage music artists and acts across all music genres.
We believe we are the world’s leading live entertainment ticketing sales and marketing company, based on the number of tickets we sell. Ticketmaster provides ticket sales services and marketing and distribution globally through www.ticketmaster.com and www.livenation.com and our mobile apps, other websites and numerous retail outlets, distributing 646 million tickets through our systems in 2025. Ticketmaster serves 10,500 clients worldwide across multiple event categories, providing ticketing services for leading arenas, stadiums, festival and concert promoters, professional sports franchises and leagues, college sports teams, performing arts venues, museums and theaters.
We believe our global footprint is one of the world’s largest music advertising networks for corporate brands and includes one of the world’s leading ecommerce websites based on a comparison of gross sales of top internet retailers.
Our principal executive offices are located at 9348 Civic Center Drive, Beverly Hills, California 90210 (telephone: 310-867-7000). Our principal website is www.livenationentertainment.com. Live Nation is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, trading under the symbol “LYV.”
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Our Strategy
Our strategy is to grow the global live entertainment industry by connecting artists with their fans, selling more tickets and partnering with additional sponsors. We invest nearly $15 billion annually in artist performances – from club and theater acts to global superstars – more than any other company in the industry. In addition, we are investing in venue infrastructure around the world to support artists, meet rising fan demand and strengthen our long-term growth.
Our core businesses surrounding the promotion of live events include ticketing and sponsorship and advertising. We believe our focus on growing these businesses will increase shareholder value as we continue to enhance our revenue streams. In our ticketing business, we serve artists, venues, and sports teams and leagues to secure content and tickets as well as invest in technology to build innovative products which advance our ticketing, including mobile platforms and advertising. Lastly, we are paid by sponsors and advertisers that want to connect their brands with a passionate fan base.
We execute on our strategy and thereby grow and innovate through the initiatives listed below.
•Expand our Concert Platform. We will deliver more shows, grow the fan base and increase our ticket sales by continuing to build our portfolio of concerts globally, expanding our business into additional top global music markets, and further building our presence in existing markets. Through our culture of serving artists and a focus on supporting the development of emerging artists, we believe we can continue to expand our concert base.
•Grow our Revenue per Show. We will grow our revenue per show across our venues through more effective ticket pricing, broader ticketing distribution and more targeted promotional marketing. We will also grow our onsite fan monetization by improving ease of purchase, through improved onsite food and beverage and other products, merchandising, and enhanced experiences for the fans.
•Invest in Venue Infrastructure and Enhancement Projects. To support the continued growth of artists and global fan demand, we are investing capital expenditures to expand our venue footprint – focusing on large theaters, amphitheaters, arenas and stadiums - to more markets around the world and upgrading our existing venues to enhance hospitality efforts for the fan base.
•Invest in our Ticketing Platform. We will continue to invest in our ticketing enterprise system and develop innovative products to better serve our enterprise clients and continue to build our global client base. These include technological and digital transformations, enhanced marketing capabilities, and improved analytical tools to meet the needs of venues, event organizers and fans.
•Grow our Marketplace Capabilities. We are focused on selling tickets through a wide set of sales channels including mobile, online and affiliate partners while continuing to broaden our digital rollout. Within this, we will continue to invest in tools that reduce fraud and help artists and teams determine how to get their tickets into the hands of real fans. Lastly, we are focused on leveraging our platform by growing non-service fee revenue streams including insurance, additional enterprise tools, payment integration and other upsells.
•Grow Sponsorship and Advertising Partnerships. We will continue to drive growth in our sponsorship relationships and capture a larger share of the global music sponsorship market by further monetizing our venue portfolio as well as grow our portfolio of brands connecting with fans. We will focus on expanding existing partnerships and developing new corporate sponsor partners to provide them with targeted strategic programs, accessing the fans attending our shows. We will continue to develop and to scale new products in order to drive onsite and digital revenue.
Our Strengths
We believe we have unique resources that are unmatched in the live entertainment industry.
•Fans. During 2025, we connected over 805 million fans to their favorite live events. Our database of fans and their interests provides us with the means to efficiently communicate to them about shows they are likely to be interested in.
•Artists. We have extensive relationships with artists ranging from those just beginning their careers to established superstars. In 2025, we promoted shows for approximately 11,000 artists globally. In addition, through our artist management companies, we managed approximately 360 artists in 2025.
•Digital Platforms and Ticketing. We own and operate various branded websites, both in the United States and abroad, which are customized to reflect services offered in each jurisdiction. Our primary commercial websites, www.livenation.com and www.ticketmaster.com, together with our other branded ticketing websites, are designed to promote ticket sales for live events. We also have both Live Nation and Ticketmaster mobile apps that fans can use to access event information and buy tickets.
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•Distribution Network. We believe that our global network of promoters, venues and festivals provides us with a strong position in the live concert industry. We believe we have one of the largest global networks of live entertainment businesses in the world, with offices in 51 countries worldwide. In addition, we own, lease, operate, have exclusive booking rights for, or have an equity interest for which we have a significant influence in 460 venues and have operations located across 55 countries as of the end of 2025, making us, we believe, the second largest operator of music venues in the world. We also believe that we are one of the largest music festival producers in the world with 131 festivals globally in 2025. In addition, we believe that our global ticketing distribution network—with approximately 10,500 clients worldwide in 2025 — makes us the largest ticketing network in the world.
•Sponsors. We monetize our physical and digital assets through long-term sponsorship agreements and advertising. We employ a sales force of approximately 830 people that worked with more than 1,500 sponsors during 2025, through a combination of strategic partnerships, local venue-related deals, national agreements and digital campaigns, both in North America and internationally. Our sponsors include some of the most well-recognized national and global brands across diverse sectors including consumer, financials and leisure, such as Citibank, O2, Mastercard, Cisco, Red Bull and Anheuser Busch (each of these brands is a registered trademark of the sponsor).
Our Industry
We operate in the following main industries within the live entertainment business: live music events, music venue operations, the provision of management and other services to artists and athletes, ticketing services and sponsorship and advertising sales.
The live music industry includes concert promotion and/or production of music events or tours. Typically, to initiate live music events or tours, booking agents work with artists. Booking agents then work with promoters, who will contract with them or with artists directly, to promote events. Promoters earn revenue primarily from the sale of tickets. Artists are paid by the promoter under one of several different formulas, which may include fixed guarantees and/or a percentage of ticket sales or event profits. In addition, promoters may also reimburse artists for certain costs of production, such as sound and lights. Under guaranteed payment formulas, promoters assume the risks of unprofitable events. Promoters may renegotiate lower guarantees or cancel events because of insufficient ticket sales in order to reduce their losses. Promoters can also reduce the risk of losses by entering into global or national touring agreements with artists and including the right to offset lower performing shows against higher performing shows on the tour in the determination of overall artist fees. Artist managers primarily provide services to music artists to manage their careers. The artist manager negotiates on behalf of the artist and is paid a fee, generally as a percentage of the artist’s earnings.
We believe the artist-fan connection is the source of nearly all commercial value and as a result, our artists receive the majority of all ticketing revenue. For music tours, four to eight months typically elapse between initially booking artists and the first performances. Artists, in conjunction with promoters, managers and booking agents, set ticket prices and advertising plans. Promoters market events, sell tickets, rent or otherwise provide venues and arrange for local production services, such as stages and equipment.
Venue operators typically contract with promoters to have their venues rented for specific events on specific dates and receive fixed fees and/or percentages of ticket sales as rental income. In addition, venue operators provide services such as concessions, parking, security, ushering and ticket scanning at the gate, and receive some or all of the revenue from concessions, merchandise, parking and premium seating.
Ticketing services generally refers to the sale of tickets primarily through online and mobile channels, but also include sales through phone, outlet and box office channels. Ticketing companies will contract with venues and/or promoters to sell tickets to events over a period of time, generally three to five years. The ticketing company generally gets paid a fixed fee per ticket sold or a percentage of the total ticket service charges. The ticketing company receives the cash for the ticket sales and related service charges at the time the ticket is sold and periodically remits these receipts to the venue and/or promoter after deducting its fee. Venues will often also sell tickets through a local box office at the venue using the ticketing company’s technology. Venues set the ticketing service fee to be charged on tickets and typically retain the majority of these fees.
Ticketing resale services generally refers to the sale of tickets by a holder who originally obtained the tickets from a venue or other entity. Resale tickets are also referred to as secondary tickets. Generally, the ticket resale company is paid a service charge by both seller and buyer, when the ticket is resold and the remaining ticket value is paid to the holder.
The sponsorship and advertising industry within the live entertainment business involves the sale of international, national, regional and local advertising and promotional programs to a variety of companies to advertise or promote their brand, product or service. These sponsorships typically include venue and festival naming rights, onsite venue signage, online and in-app advertisements and exclusive partner rights in various categories such as credit card, beverage, travel and telecommunications, and may include venue and festival event pre-sales and onsite product activation.
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Our Business
Our reportable segments are Concerts, Ticketing and Sponsorship & Advertising.
Concerts. Our Concerts segment principally involves the global promotion of live music events in our owned or operated venues and in rented third-party venues, the operation and management of music venues, the production of music festivals across the world, the creation of associated content and the provision of management and other services to artists. Including intersegment revenue, our Concerts business generated $20.9 billion, or 83%, of our total revenue during 2025. We promoted approximately 55,000 live music and other events in 2025. While our Concerts segment traditionally operates year-round, we experience higher revenue during the second and third quarters due to the seasonal nature of shows at our outdoor amphitheaters and festivals, which primarily occur from May through October. We expect our seasonality trends to evolve as we continue to expand our global operations.
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Financial statements
data from SEC XBRL filings. Values are as-reported; restatements supersede originals. Values reported in .
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ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
You should read the following discussion of our financial condition and results of operations together with the audited consolidated financial statements and notes to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but rather are based on current expectations, estimates, assumptions and projections about our industry, business and future financial results. Our actual results could differ materially from the results contemplated by these forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including those discussed under Item 1A.—Risk Factors and other sections in this Annual Report.
The following discussion of our financial condition and results of operations generally discusses 2025 and 2024 items along with year-over-year comparisons between these two years. Discussion of 2023 items and year-over-year comparisons between 2024 and 2023 can be found in Item 7—Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in our 2024 Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Executive Overview
2025 was another record year for the Company with operating income up 52% and AOI up 10% versus 2024. We saw demand for live experiences growing across the globe, notably in our international markets, with superstar acts performing to packed houses from Toronto to Taipei and from Buenos Aires to Berlin. We had our highest ever volume of stadium shows in 2025, fueling our best topline revenue in the Company’s 20-year history. Once again, our Concerts segment led our segments in terms of growth, generating $687.1 million in AOI, an increase of 30% over 2024. We added 8 million fans in 2025 and over half of our full year fan count came from markets outside the United States – the first time this has happened. Our global footprint of venues continued to expand during the year with more new club, theater, amphitheater, arena and stadium opportunities around the globe planned in 2026 and beyond.
Our overall revenue increased by $2.0 billion, or 9%, to $25.2 billion as compared to last year. The increase in revenue was $1.8 billion without the impact of changes in foreign exchange rates. Operating income for the year improved by $426.7 million or 52%, largely from the impact of the Astroworld losses recorded in 2024. The increase in operating income was $416.0 million without the impact of changes in foreign exchange rates. Consolidated AOI for the year increased by $220.5 million, or 10%, to $2.4 billion this year.
Our event-related deferred revenue balance increased by $698.7 million, or 21%, to $4.0 billion as of December 31, 2025 compared to December 31, 2024. This, coupled with current ticket sales for 2026, which are up 10% versus the same point in 2025, suggests ongoing strong demand for concerts, making us confident in our continued success in the year ahead.
For the year, we experienced favorable foreign currency translation impacts of $199.0 million on revenues and $10.7 million on operating income. The majority of the favorable impact came from the Euro and British Pound, partially offset by the Mexican and Argentinian Pesos.
All of the segment financial comments below are based on reported foreign currency exchange rates.
Our Concerts segment revenue for the year increased by $1.8 billion, or 10% compared to 2024, from $19.0 billion to $20.9 billion. Approximately 159 million fans attended our shows in the year, our largest annual fan count ever, compared to approximately 151 million last year, for growth of 8 million or 5%. The growth was focused in our international markets, most notably in Europe, Mexico and Asia. Growth in stadium content drove fan count increases in nearly all of our markets, hitting an all-time high. Some of the larger acts touring globally in the year included Shakira, Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd and Oasis, reflecting the global diversified base of the industry.
Concerts AOI for the year increased by $157.3 million, or 30%, compared to 2024, from $529.7 million to $687.1 million. Our ancillary revenue spending at our United States amphitheater shows was over $45 per fan for the year, with onsite spend growing by 6%. On the venue front, we had several notable developments. We opened Rogers Stadium in Toronto, which hosted nearly 700 thousand fans over the summer with even more shows and more fans planned in 2026. After extensive renovations, we also re-opened an arena in Hamilton, Ontario Canada as TD Coliseum with Paul McCartney headlining the venue’s first show. Our first venue in South America, the Vive Claro stadium in Bogota, Colombia opened in August 2025 with capacity for 40 thousand fans per show. Finally, two new amphitheaters and one large indoor/outdoor theater opened in the United States.
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Our Ticketing segment revenue for the year increased by $92.5 million, or 3%, compared to 2024, from $3.0 billion to $3.1 billion. Ticketing AOI for the year was $1.1 billion, up 1% compared to our 2024 results. We sold 346 million fee-bearing tickets in 2025 compared to 340 million tickets last year, up 6 million tickets or 2%. Concerts fee-bearing tickets were up 4% while we saw reductions in the Sports, Arts and Family categories. Secondary tickets remain a small portion of our fee-bearing business and we continued to invest to align with artist and fans’ interest. Fee-bearing GTV for the year was $37.1 billion, up $2.1 billion, or 6% compared to 2024. Again, concerts led this favorability, growing GTV by 9% where our other sales genres saw an overall drop in GTV. The year also ended on a positive note with the fourth quarter coming in as our highest quarter ever for reported ticket sales and GTV. It was our second highest quarter ever for transacted ticket sales and GTV, fueled by record stadium sales in our international markets for 2026 events. This resulted in our highest fourth quarter deferred revenue for Ticketing.
We signed 27.0 million net new tickets in 2025, of which 20.5 million, or roughly 75%, are from clients outside of North America, highlighting the significance of our international operations and our global expansion opportunity. This gives us confidence that our ticketing platforms’ features and functionalities will continue to fuel growth going forward.
Our Sponsorship & Advertising segment revenue for the year increased by $134.2 million, or 11%, compared to 2024 from $1.2 billion to $1.3 billion. Sponsorship & Advertising AOI increased by $81.4 million, or 11%, compared to 2024, from $763.8 million to $845.2 million. The increase was largely driven by the United States, Latin America and Europe. Naming rights and other innovative deals attached to our new venues drove venue sponsorship up 15% year-over-year. New and expanded digital platform integrations further drove United States sponsorship growth while multiple Europe markets were successful in scaling high impact partnerships and bundled programs. Latin America saw growth from our new arena, Vive Claro, and a full-year of Estadio GNP.
We are optimistic about the long-term potential of our Company and remain focused on the key elements of our business model: expanding our global platforms to connect artists and fans.
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Consolidated Results of Operations
| Year Ended December 31, | % Change 2025 vs 2024 | % Change 2024 vs 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| As Reported | Currency Impacts | Constant Currency* | As Reported | As Reported | As Reported | Constant Currency* | As Reported | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 25,201,406 | $ | (198,971) | $ | 25,002,435 | $ | 23,155,625 | $ | 22,726,317 | 9% | 8% | 2% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating expenses: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Direct operating expenses | 18,763,356 | 17,380,866 | 17,290,718 | 8% | 1% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Selling, general and administrative expenses | 4,091,759 | 4,043,712 | 3,516,979 | 1% | 15% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 638,872 | 549,923 | 516,797 | 16% | 6% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gain on disposal of operating assets | (18,528) | (11,015) | (13,927) | 68% | (21)% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Corporate expenses | 474,730 | 367,629 | 330,817 | 29% | 11% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating income | 1,251,217 | (10,746) | 1,240,471 | 824,510 | 1,084,933 | 52% | 50% | (24)% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating margin | 5.0% | 5.0% | 3.6% | 4.8% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Interest expense | 316,033 | 325,974 | 350,244 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Loss on extinguishment of debt | 780 | 2,563 | 18,504 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Interest income | (150,445) | (156,254) | (237,818) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Equity in losses (earnings) of nonconsolidated affiliates | (3,206) | 16,675 | 5,455 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other expense (income), net | 57,528 | (103,874) | 35,274 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Income before income taxes | 1,030,527 | 739,426 | 913,274 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Income tax expense (benefit) | 339,787 | (391,698) | 209,476 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net income | 690,740 | 1,131,124 | 703,798 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests | 194,768 | 234,837 | 146,905 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net income attributable to common stockholders of Live Nation | $ | 495,972 | $ | 896,287 | $ | 556,893 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| * | Constant currency is a non-GAAP financial measure. We calculate currency impacts as the difference between current period activity translated using the current period’s currency exchange rates and the comparable prior period’s currency exchange rates. We present constant currency information to provide a framework for assessing how our underlying businesses performed excluding the effect of foreign currency rate fluctuations. |
Revenue
Revenue increased $2.0 billion during the year ended December 31, 2025 as compared to the prior year driven by increased revenue in our Concerts segment of $1.8 billion, Ticketing segment of $92.5 million and Sponsorship & Advertising segment of $134.2 million as further discussed within each segment’s operating results.
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Operating income
Operating income increased $426.7 million during the year ended December 31, 2025 as compared to the prior year primarily driven by increased operating income in our Concerts segment of $467.5 million and Sponsorship & Advertising segment of $81.6 million. These were partially offset by higher certain acquisition expenses of $87.6 million, as further discussed within each segment’s operating results.
Other expense (income), net
For the year ended December 31, 2025, we had other expense, net of $57.5 million, which primarily consisted of net foreign exchange rate losses of $61.1 million. For the year ended December 31, 2024, we had other income, net of $103.9 million, which primarily includes mark to market adjustments for certain investments in nonconsolidated affiliates of $99.2 million.
Income taxes
For the year ended December 31, 2025, we had a net tax expense of $339.8 million on income before income taxes of $1.0 billion compared to a net tax benefit of $391.7 million on income before income taxes of $739.4 million for 2024. In 2025, the net income tax expense consisted of $49.0 million of tax expense related to United States federal income taxes, $277.3 million of tax expense related to foreign entities and $13.5 million of tax expense related to state and local income taxes. The net increase in tax expense of $731.5 million is primarily related to the release of valuation allowances in 2024, due to changes in judgment regarding the realizability of certain deferred tax assets. The remaining change in tax expense is due to increased operational results in tax paying jurisdictions during 2025.
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests decreased $40.1 million during the year ended December 31, 2025 as compared to the prior year primarily due to lower show activity from certain concert businesses during 2025 as compared to the prior year.
Non-GAAP Measures
Consolidated AOI
Consolidated AOI is a non-GAAP financial measure that we define as consolidated operating income (loss) before certain acquisition expenses (including ongoing legal costs stemming from the Ticketmaster merger, changes in the fair value of accrued acquisition-related contingent consideration obligations, and acquisition-related severance and compensation), amortization of non-recoupable ticketing contract advances, depreciation and amortization (including goodwill impairment), loss (gain) on disposal of operating assets, and stock-based compensation expense. Due to the significant and non-recurring nature of the matters, we also exclude from AOI the impact of realized liabilities for settlements or damages arising out of the Astroworld matter that exceed our estimated insurance recovery, and expenses for regulatory compliance matters associated with the provision for (possible) losses arising from certain significant governmental investigations and litigations under ASC 450 - Contingencies, which are described under the heading “Governmental Investigations and Litigation” in Note 7 of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements herein. Except as described above, ongoing legal costs associated with defense of these claims, such as attorney fees, are not excluded from AOI.
We use AOI to evaluate the performance of our operating segments. We believe that information about AOI assists investors by allowing them to evaluate changes in the operating results of our portfolio of businesses separate from non-operational factors that affect net income (loss), thus providing insights into both operations and the other factors that affect reported results. AOI is not calculated or presented in accordance with GAAP. A limitation of the use of AOI as a performance measure is that it does not reflect the periodic costs of certain amortizing assets used in generating revenue in our business. Accordingly, AOI should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, operating income (loss), net income (loss), and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP. Furthermore, this measure may vary among other companies; thus, AOI as presented herein may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies.
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The following table sets forth the reconciliation of consolidated operating income to consolidated AOI for the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023:
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | |||||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||||||||
| Operating income | $ | 1,251,217 | $ | 824,510 | $ | 1,084,933 | |||||||||||
| Acquisition expenses | 259,586 | 128,513 | 93,664 | ||||||||||||||
| Amortization of non-recoupable ticketing contract advance | 88,386 | 88,717 | 83,693 | ||||||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 638,872 | 549,923 | 516,797 | ||||||||||||||
| Gain on sale of operating assets | (18,528) | (11,015) | (13,927) | ||||||||||||||
| Astroworld loss contingencies | (8,352) | 454,902 | — | ||||||||||||||
| Stock-based compensation expense | 155,219 | 110,348 | 115,959 | ||||||||||||||
| Consolidated AOI | $ | 2,366,400 | $ | 2,145,898 | $ | 1,881,119 | |||||||||||
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Segment Overview
Information regarding our use of AOI to evaluate the performance of our operating segments can be found in Part II —Financial Information —Item 8.—Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Note 11 – Segments and Revenue Recognition.
Concerts
Revenue and related costs for events are generally deferred and recognized when the event occurs. All advertising costs incurred during the year for shows in future years are expensed at the end of the year. If a current year event is rescheduled into a future year, all advertising costs incurred to date are expensed in the period when the event is rescheduled.
Concerts direct operating expenses include artist fees, event production costs, show-related marketing and advertising expenses, along with other costs.
To judge the health of our Concerts segment, we primarily monitor the number of confirmed events and fan attendance in our network of operated and third-party venues, talent fees, average paid attendance, market ticket pricing, advance ticket sales and the number of major artist clients under management. In addition, at our operated venues and festivals, we monitor ancillary revenue per fan and premium ticket sales. For business that is conducted in foreign markets, we also compare the operating results from our foreign operations to prior periods without the impact of changes in foreign exchange rates.
Ticketing
Revenue related to ticketing service charges is recognized when the ticket is sold for our third-party clients. For our own events, where our concert promoters or venues control ticketing, revenue is deferred and recognized when the event occurs. GTV represents the total amount of the transaction related to a ticket sale and includes the face value of the ticket as well as the service charge. We use GTV to evaluate changes in ticket fee revenue that are driven by the pricing of our service charges.
Ticketing direct operating expenses include call center costs and credit card fees, along with other costs.
To judge the health of our Ticketing segment, we primarily review the GTV and the number of tickets sold through our primary and secondary ticketing operations, the number of clients renewed or added and the average royalty rate paid to clients who use our ticketing services. In addition, we review the number of visits to our websites, cost of customer acquisition, the purchase conversion rate, and the overall number of customers in our database. For business that is conducted in foreign markets, we also compare the operating results from our foreign operations to prior periods without the impact of changes in foreign exchange rates.
Sponsorship & Advertising
Revenue related to sponsorship and advertising programs is recognized over the term of the agreement or operating season as the benefits are provided to the sponsor unless the revenue is associated with a specific event, in which case it is recognized when the event occurs.
Sponsorship & Advertising direct operating expenses include fulfillment costs related to our sponsorship programs, along with other costs.
To judge the health of our Sponsorship & Advertising segment, we primarily review the revenue generated through sponsorship arrangements and online advertising, and the percentage of expected revenue under contract. For business that is conducted in foreign markets, we also compare the operating results from our foreign operations to prior periods without the impact of changes in foreign exchange rates.
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Key Operating Metrics
| Year Ended December 31, | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands except estimated events) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Concerts (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Estimated events: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
North America (2) | 34,784 | 36,673 | 33,629 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International | 19,773 | 18,014 | 16,430 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total estimated events | 54,557 | 54,687 | 50,059 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Estimated fans: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
North America (2) | 83,005 | 86,563 | 81,252 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International | 76,161 | 64,486 | 64,538 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total estimated fans | 159,166 | 151,049 | 145,790 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ticketing (3) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Estimated number of fee-bearing tickets sold | 345,987 | 340,181 | 336,989 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Estimated number of non-fee-bearing tickets sold | 300,416 | 297,550 | 283,422 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total estimated tickets sold | 646,403 | 637,731 | 620,411 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(1)Events generally represent a single performance by an artist. Fans generally represent the number of people who attend an event. Festivals are counted as one event in the quarter in which the festival begins, but the number of fans is based on the days the fans were present at the festival and thus can be reported across multiple quarters. Events and fan attendance metrics are estimated each quarter.
(2)North America refers to our events and fans within the United States and Canada.
(3)The fee-bearing tickets estimated above include primary and secondary tickets that are sold using our Ticketmaster systems or that we issue through affiliates along with tickets sold on our “do it yourself” platform. This metric includes primary tickets sold during the year regardless of event timing, except for our own events where our concert promoters or venues control ticketing which are reported when the events occur. The non-fee-bearing tickets estimated above include primary tickets sold using our Ticketmaster systems, through season seat packages and our venue clients’ box offices. These ticketing metrics are net of any refunds requested and any cancellations that occurred during the period and up to the time of reporting of these consolidated financial statements.
35
Segment Operating Results
Concerts
Our Concerts segment operating results were, and discussions of significant variances are, as follows:
| Year Ended December 31, | % Change 2025 vs 2024 | % Change 2024 vs 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 20,860,726 | $ | 19,024,302 | $ | 18,740,913 | 10% | 2% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Direct operating expenses | 17,437,914 | 16,041,350 | 16,001,769 | 9% | 0.2% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Selling, general and administrative expenses | 2,910,943 | 3,005,885 | 2,497,983 | (3)% | 20% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 444,806 | 370,108 | 320,680 | 20% | 15% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gain on disposal of operating assets | (18,482) | (11,094) | (10,804) | 67% | 3% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating income (loss) | $ | 85,545 | $ | (381,947) | $ | (68,715) | * | * | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating margin | 0.4% | (2.0)% | (0.4)% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| AOI | $ | 687,083 | $ | 529,748 | $ | 320,397 | 30% | 65% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| AOI margin | 3.3% | 2.8% | 1.7% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
_________________________
| * | Percentages are not meaningful. |
Revenue
Concerts revenue increased $1.8 billion during the year ended December 31, 2025 as compared to the prior year primarily due to more stadium shows and fans. Concerts had incremental revenue of $534.2 million during 2025 from acquisitions and new venues.
Operating results
Concerts AOI increased $157.3 million and operating income increased $467.5 million during the year ended December 31, 2025 as compared to the prior year. The increase in AOI was primarily driven by higher revenue as discussed above partially offset by increased direct operating expenses to support more stadium shows and fan growth at events. The remaining change in operating income outside of AOI of $310.2 million is primarily associated with the nonrecurring Astroworld loss contingencies in the prior year. These were partially offset by higher depreciation and amortization expense of $74.7 million related to capital expenditures incurred to support new venues in operation in 2025 as well as increased operations, higher acquisition expenses of $43.2 million, mostly due to contingent consideration changes during 2025, as well as higher stock-based compensation of $42.6 million.
36
Ticketing
Our Ticketing segment operating results were, and discussions of significant variances are, as follows:
| Year Ended December 31, | % Change 2025 vs 2024 | % Change 2024 vs 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 3,081,166 | $ | 2,988,685 | $ | 2,959,477 | 3% | 1% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Direct operating expenses | 1,125,636 | 1,142,320 | 1,108,125 | (1)% | 3% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Selling, general and administrative expenses | 947,040 | 835,486 | 814,882 | 13% | 3% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 109,531 | 100,329 | 105,256 | 9% | (5)% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Loss (gain) on disposal of operating assets | (46) | 41 | 39 | * | 5% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating income | $ | 899,005 | $ | 910,509 | $ | 931,175 | (1)% | (2)% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating margin | 29.2% | 30.5% | 31.5% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| AOI | $ | 1,134,432 | $ | 1,123,588 | $ | 1,140,133 | 1% | (1)% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| AOI margin | 36.8% | 37.6% | 38.5% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
__________________________
| * | Percentages are not meaningful. |
Revenue
Ticketing revenue increased $92.5 million during the year ended December 31, 2025 as compared to the prior year primarily due to higher primary ticket sales for concerts.
Operating results
Ticketing AOI increased $10.8 million and operating income decreased $11.5 million during the year ended December 31, 2025 as compared to the prior year primarily driven by higher revenue discussed above partially offset by higher selling, general and administrative expenses due to increased investments in cybersecurity and new fan-friendly tools. The remaining change in operating income outside of AOI of $22.3 million is primarily due to higher stock-based compensation of $13.2 million.
37
Sponsorship & Advertising
Our Sponsorship & Advertising segment operating results were, and discussions of significant variances are, as follows:
| Year Ended December 31, | % Change 2025 vs 2024 | % Change 2024 vs 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 1,329,233 | $ | 1,195,019 | $ | 1,095,217 | 11% | 9% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Direct operating expenses | 270,024 | 242,536 | 245,297 | 11% | (1)% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Selling, general and administrative expenses | 225,153 | 197,565 | 184,158 | 14% | 7% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 60,527 | 62,934 | 72,969 | (4)% | (14)% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Loss on disposal of operating assets | — | 38 | — | * | * | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating income | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Recent insider activity
| Date | Insider | Role | Action | Shares | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-05-08 | Rowles Michael | EVP & General Counsel | Sell | -63,776 ×4 | $164.24 | -$10,474,406 |
| 2026-05-07 | Hopmans John | EVP, M&A and Strategic Finance | Sell | -93,078 ×6 | $166.07 | -$15,457,892 |
Source: SEC Form 4 filings.
Next expected filings
- ~2026-08-06 10-Q expected by 2026-08-12 (in 56 days)
- ~2026-11-03 10-Q expected by 2026-11-09 (in 145 days)
- ~2027-02-18 10-K expected by 2027-02-23 (in 252 days)
- ~2027-05-04 10-Q expected by 2027-05-10 (in 327 days)
Predicted from historical filing cadence; not an SEC commitment.
Recent SEC filings
- 2026-05-08 8-K Material Agreement Entered; Material Financial Obligation; Financial Statements and Exhibits
- 2026-05-05 10-Q Quarterly Report
- 2026-05-05 8-K Earnings Release; Financial Statements and Exhibits
- 2026-04-24 DEF 14A Proxy Statement
- 2026-02-19 10-K Annual Report
- 2026-02-19 8-K Earnings Release; Financial Statements and Exhibits
- 2025-11-04 10-Q Quarterly Report
- 2025-11-04 8-K Earnings Release; Financial Statements and Exhibits
- 2025-10-24 8-K Material Agreement Entered; Material Financial Obligation; Financial Statements and Exhibits
- 2025-10-10 8-K Material Agreement Entered; Material Financial Obligation; Unregistered Equity Sale; Other Events; Financial Statements and Exhibits
- 2025-08-29 8-K Other Events; Financial Statements and Exhibits
- 2025-08-07 10-Q Quarterly Report
- 2025-08-07 8-K Earnings Release; Financial Statements and Exhibits
- 2025-06-13 8-K Officer/Director Change; Shareholder Vote Results; Financial Statements and Exhibits
- 2025-05-20 8-K Officer/Director Change; Financial Statements and Exhibits