Twickets founder Richard Davies says the number of Oasis tickets being resold on the fan-to-fan platform is picking up markedly as the Gallagher brothers’ long-awaited reunion tour draws ever closer.

The Oasis Live ’25 Tour was the biggest-ever concert launch in UK and Ireland history, as more than 10 million fans from 158 countries competed to buy the 1.4m tickets available for the group’s first shows since 2009.

Twickets, which enables users to offload tickets at no more than face value when they can no longer make a show, is the official ticket resale platform for the concerts, with the arrangement extended to cover Oasis’ upcoming international dates in Australia and the Americas.

Davies tells IQ that while Twickets had seen ticket trading in the “low thousands” for the sold out run so far, there has been a noticeable upturn in volume as the days tick down until the SJM and Live Nation-promoted run kicks off at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium in Wales on 4 July.

“It’s starting to double month-on-month now,” he says. “This month’s looking quite strong for trading on Oasis and I think, as we get to next month, we’ll start seeing a lot of tickets becoming available. That’s always the pattern for us.”

“The UK has really started to heat up now and I think we’ll start to see volume from now on”

On that subject, Davies points out that a “huge number” of tickets were bought and sold late in the day for Sam Fender’s recent UK stadium shows.

“It was all in the last ten days,” he says. “We hit the beginning of June and saw so much trading on Sam Fender, and that will happen with Oasis as well. The UK has really started to heat up now and I think we’ll start to see volume from now on. We’ve had a few standard tickets appear, but they get snapped up so quickly – literally, within a second. People are just sitting there refreshing their browsers.”

The enormous level of interest has prompted Twickets to remove ticket alerts for the tour.

“It was chaos,” reports Davies. “So many people would have alerts set up and not get to the inventory, so we’re having to leave it as first come, first served, as they’re getting bought within a millisecond of being listed. But I’m sure there will be a plentiful supply near the time. It always happens, no matter what the show.”

It was announced today (18 June) that official Oasis Live ’25 Fan Stores, featuring tour merchandise and limited edition products, are set to launch nationwide ahead of the tour. The first one will open in the band’s native Manchester this Friday 20 June, with others to follow in cities including Cardiff, London, Edinburgh, Dublin and Birmingham.

The Oasis on-sale last August became infamously marred by a dynamic ticketing row that triggered multiple inquiries in the UK and Ireland. Strict anti-touting measures were put in place, with fans permitted to resell their tickets through Twickets or Ticketmaster only.

LN and SJM vowed to cancel up to 50,000 tickets deemed to have breached the rules in an effort to clamp down on unofficial resale sites, while Ticketmaster and See Tickets cancelled tickets identified as being purchased by bots.

“Every year since the pandemic, we’ve grown substantially”

Meanwhile, Davies has shared his glee at Twickets’ recent appointment of former See Tickets and Eventim UK veteran Martin Fitzgerald as its first non-executive director.

“It’s great having Martin on board,” says Davies. “He’s one of the good guys and it’s really nice to have someone with his pedigree behind us. He’s someone who can offer us a lot of advice and experience, and he has an amazing address book of contacts as well.”

Twickets has previously partnered with both Liam and Noel Gallagher on their respective solo shows, as well as acts including Arctic Monkeys, Foo Fighters, Adele, Queen, Take That and Stormzy. Its revenue model sees buyers pay a standard booking fee of 10-15% of the ticket price.

Davies reports the firm, which is backed by several high-profile managers, agents and promoters, has had a “very good” H1 2025.

“We’ve increased by 25% in terms of volume year-on-year for the first half of the year – which is without doubt going to be the quieter half of the year for us – and roughly 30% in terms of revenue,” he says. “So revenue is outstripping volume, which demonstrates that ticket prices are going up. Every year since the pandemic, we’ve grown substantially, and we’re going to be profitable again. We’re profitable for the first half and we’ll be certainly profitable for the second half.”

“I still come across too many people who don’t know about Twickets, or have only just recently discovered us”

Twickets participated in the UK government’s consultation into the secondary ticketing market, which closed in April and pledged to “tackle greedy touts and give power back to fans”, with a new cap on the price of resale tickets among measures being considered.

“We called for a cap on the original price of the ticket, with no markup at all,” says Davies. “It’s just a question of what that cap is now, more than anything else, but I don’t expect it to be confirmed anytime soon. By the sound of it, it’s going to be well into 2026 before any legislation gets passed.”

As for Twickets’ future, Davies says the priority for next phase of the company is to continue to raise its profile.

“Whilst we’ve had five million unique users in the first half of this year, that’s just a fraction of the event-going marketplace so we need to keep spreading the word,” he says. “I still come across too many people who don’t know about Twickets, or have only just recently discovered us, so we’ve got a lot to do and that’s where Martin can help us as well.

“It’s important that we continue to grow and build out from what we’ve achieved so far in the UK – and beyond just music. We’ve now started working in the theatre world and hopefully in sport as well, so there’s a lot more that can be achieved. There’s a lot of work still to be done, but that’s exciting, because we’ve achieved a lot, with potential for so much more.”

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Ethical ticket resale platform Twickets has announced the appointment of Martin Fitzgerald as its first non-executive director.

Fitzgerald has extensive experience from senior leadership roles at See Tickets and Eventim UK, where he helped steer various commercial and strategic developments.

The appointment has been confirmed as the business prepares for its next phase of expansion in the live entertainment sector.

Twickets reported a 30% increase in revenue and a 25% rise in tickets sold in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024. The platform also welcomed over five million users in the first six months of the year.

“Twickets have managed to turn ticketing into a good news story and I’ve long admired their commitment to putting fans first and disrupting the inflated resale market,” says Fitzgerald. “I’m thrilled to join Richard and the team to support the next phase of growth.”

CAA has announced two hires in its marketing and brand partnerships divisions

CAA has announced two hires as the agency continues expanding its marketing and brand partnerships divisions.

Adrian Ayala has been added to Global Touring’s Marketing team and joins CAA from CHIVALR, an independent operator of music venues in Southern California.

During his time at the company Ayala led marketing strategy for some of Los Angeles iconic venues such as Catch One, El Cid, and Don Quixote.

His ten-year career in marketing also includes spearheading promotions for Live Nation’s North American tours including Bon Jovi, Ariana Grande, and Coldplay and negotiating brand partnerships with Tinder, 1-800-Flowers.com, & Urban Outfitters.

In the record industry, Ayala has experience with leading digital marketing at Warner Records for artists including Bebe Rexha and Kylie Minogue.

Swansea Building Society Arena has appointed Matt Blackhouse as venue director

Ben de Ayora has joined Global Touring’s brand partnerships team at CAA and will focus on the agency’s electronic and dance artists. Most recently at AEG, de Ayora has more than a decade of experience working in music, entertainment, and technology, while connecting “global brands with cultural moments and audiences.”

Last year, he founded BRAND/PRIX, a boutique brand partnerships collective that has “collaborated with more than 30 of the most influential music venues and festivals across the U.S.” He’s also worked at Discogs, DoStuff Media, and Viacom.

Swansea Building Society Arena, the Swansea Council-owned and ATG Entertainment-operated venue in Wales, has appointed Matt Blackhouse as venue director.

Blackhouse will take on the role from 2 June at the 3,500-capacity venue, which opened in March 2022. He takes over from Lisa Mart, who in March was hired by AEG Presents as regional general manager of indigo at The O2 and the Watford Colosseum.

Blackhouse was previously senior events project manager at YTL Arena Bristol, where he was involved in development plans for the yet-to-be-opened entertainment district. Other previous roles include deputy GM and senior events manager at Utilita Arena Cardiff (cap. 7,500).

Tickets for Good has announced a new global chief operating officer 

ATG said Swansea Building Society Arena has welcomed nearly 750,000 people through its doors since it opened. Artists to have performed there include Fontaines D.C., Manic Street Preachers and Katherine Ryan.

Tickets for Good, a social profit organisation that offers healthcare workers affordable access to music and sports events, has announced the appointment of Derek DeVeaux as Global Chief Operating Officer (COO).

Reporting to Tickets For Good CEO Steve Rimmer, U.S.-based DeVeaux is tasked with leading key partnerships, overseeing day-to-day operations, and the platform product delivery. With more than 20 years of experience in technology and operations, he previously served as Head of Technology at Sports Business Journal and worked at AmerisourceBergen, Passport, and Citibank. He is the Founder of Chasm Analytics, a consultancy enabling scalable technology and business solutions.

With this phase of significant international growth at Tickets For Good, further senior global appointments include Jess Nesbit in Ticketing Operations and Alex Deadman in Communications.

Additionally, the company has expanded its UK-based staff with hires in key roles: Aaron Taylor as New Business Lead, George Webb as Ticketing Operations & Customer Service Lead, and Laura Harmer as Community Partnerships Lead.

Former Live Nation exec Martin Alsop has joined Clay GBP/NFP

The announcement comes as the company reaches the one million milestone for tickets distributed and approaches 500,000 registered users on its platform across its UK, EU and US businesses.

Martin Alsop has joined Clay GBP, a full-service business management consultancy firm based in the UK, recently acquired by NFP.

Clay GBP is part of Ground Control Business Management (Ground Control), an NFP company providing a variety of business management solutions, including strategic tax services, for high net worth individuals, entertainment industry executives, entertainers and professional athletes, among others.

Ground Control recently expanded into the UK through NFP’s acquisition of Clay GBP, which will be integrated into Ground Control’s operations and ultimately rebranded as Ground Control.

Reporting to Chris Bucci, CEO of Ground Control, Martin Alsop will develop and manage the company’s UK music industry practice.

Alsop has over 20 years of experience advising UK and international touring artists and productions of varying scale. Prior to NFP, he worked at Live Nation Entertainment as vice president, Operations and Finance, EMEA region. He previously worked at Dales Evans & Co. Ltd., a leading UK accountancy firm, as a business manager.

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UK Oasis fans have lost an estimated £2 million to ticket scammers since tickets for the historic reunion tour went on sale last year, according to new research.

Analysing over 1,000 reports from its customers, Lloyds Bank found a surge in fraud cases around the sold-out run, with 56% of all reported concert ticket scams being for the Mancunian rockers.

“The Oasis tour is the latest target for ticket scammers, with millions of pounds of fans’ money stolen before the gigs even kick off,” says Liz Ziegler, Lloyds’ fraud prevention director.

Victims have lost an average of £436 each, with the largest amount lost at over £1,700, the banking group found. Combined with its own clientele, Lloyds gauged roughly 5,000 individuals have been targeted, resulting in over £2m lost to fraudsters.

Ticket swindles for the sold-out run are surging across social media platforms, with a reported 90% of incidents starting on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Fake adverts and unofficial resale groups are prime deceivers for fans looking to score tickets.

“The fact that so many cases start with fake listings on social media, often in violation of the platforms’ own rules, underscores the importance of these companies taking stronger action to tackle scams,” Ziegler says. “It’s vital that consumers feel empowered to shop safely online. Buying directly from reputable, authorised retailers is the only way to guarantee you’re paying for a genuine ticket.”

Oasis’s 2025 tour onsale rocketed to become the biggest-ever concert launch in the UK and Ireland

These new findings are the latest chapter in the ongoing saga around Oasis’ ticket sales, which sent the nation into frenzy during the onsale last August. It rocketed to become the biggest-ever concert launch in the UK and Ireland, with more than 10 million fans from 158 countries attempting to buy tickets for the group’s first shows since 2009.

With the blockbuster demand and swift sell-outs came reports of dynamic pricing, prompting government and watchdog investigations into the tour. In February, a new twist came as ticketing platforms Ticketmaster and See Tickets cancelled an unspecified number of tickets bought by those believed to have broken the terms and conditions.

Predatory cons are seemingly unavoidable with high-profile tours of this magnitude. Similar reports emerged last year around Taylor Swift’s record-shattering Eras Tour run, with UK fans losing over £1m in addition to scams in Australia and Singapore.

All of this comes ahead of the legendary British rock group’s return to touring this summer. The Oasis Live 2025 tour, promoted by Live Nation, MCD Productions, SJM Concerts and DF Concerts, will see the group relaunch at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium (cap. 74,500) from 4-5 July before continuing onto Manchester’s Heaton Park (11-12, 16, 19-20 July), London’s Wembley Stadium (25-26, 30 July, 2-3 August & 27-28 September), Edinburgh’s Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium (8-9, 12 August), and Dublin’s Croke Park (16-17 August).

The reunion tour will then see the group play stadiums across North America, Asia, Australia, and South America before the year is out.

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The UK live music industry has come out strongly in favour of a price cap on resale tickets as the government’s consultation into the secondary market draws to a close.

But ahead of Friday’s deadline (4 April) IQ understands there is no consensus on the acceptable level of resale uplift the UK business will recommend. The government previously indicated it would be looking to cap resale at 10% above face value, but sought views on levels ranging from no uplift at all to 30%.

The long-anticipated consultation was initiated back in January, with the government vowing to “tackle greedy touts and give power back to fans”. Interested parties including fans, ticketing platforms and the wider live events sector were invited to submit responses.

Jonathan Brown, CEO of the Society of Ticket Retailers (STAR), says the organisation supports a “consumer-first approach” to resale.

“We back a capped resale model that already operates effectively in the UK, enabling genuine fans to resell tickets they can’t use, while preventing the kind of speculative profiteering that distorts the market,” he says. “A mandated price cap will help remove the incentive for touts to purchase tickets at scale for resale and therefore reduce bot attacks, protect consumers, and ensure fairer access to events.

“However, any new legislation needs to be backed with agile, responsive and effective enforcement, including against offshore resellers and platforms seeking to ignore UK law.”

“Ticketmaster welcomes any action to protect fans and support the live industry”

Speaking to IQ, Ticketmaster UK MD Andrew Parsons says the company is committed to making ticketing “simple and transparent”.

“Since 2018, our resale service has been capped at the original price paid, providing fans a safe place to sell tickets they can’t use right up to the event date,” he says. “This ensures as many people as possible can go and, as we all know, packed venues benefit not just performers, and the venues themselves, but also the local economy.

“We support proposals to introduce an industry-wide resale price cap, backed by a strong regulatory regime and enforcement. Ticketmaster welcomes any action to protect fans and support the live industry.”

AXS UK MD Chris Lipscomb stresses that the firm “supports any effort that helps get tickets into the hands of real fans at fair prices”. “To that end, we limit resale in the UK to 10% above price paid,” he notes.

Richard Davies, founder of ethical resale business Twickets, says the company “strongly supports” a cap on resale ticket prices.

“We’ve consistently upheld a strict policy of reselling tickets only at face value plus original booking fee to counteract exploitative practices prevalent in the secondary market,” says Davies. “We see no validity in allowing any mark up on the original price paid by the customer.

“The new legal obligations placed on resale platforms will mean a step toward protecting genuine fans and fostering fairness within the ticketing ecosystem. While inflated resale prices are undeniably problematic, the excessive booking fees charged by secondary platforms compound the issue further.”

“As ever, there are details to be hammered out, but we are right behind the broad thrust”

Jon Collins, CEO of UK trade body LIVE, points out that research carried out for the group by market research agency Opinium showed that just 12% of the 2,000 members of public surveyed opposed the idea of a cap.

“LIVE fully supports government action in this space to remove touts from our sector, end ticket harvesting and see tickets in the hands of genuine fans,” he says. “As ever, there are details to be hammered out, but we are right behind the broad thrust. We are pleased to see government delivering on its manifesto commitment in this area, bringing forward measures which permit responsible and fair fan-to-fan resale, while eliminating third-party profiteering.”

O2, which sells over 1.5 million tickets per year to its customers via Priority Tickets, has been vocal in calling for a 10% price cap on resale. The firm’s Fight for Fairer Ticketing campaign partnered with Bastille singer Dan Smith last week to launch Stamp It Tout – an online hub designed to help fans navigate the ticket resale market safely.

UK watchdog the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) added its backing to a price cap last month. It stopped short of recommending a specific limit, warning of “unintended consequences, such as creating a point of price coordination for sellers”. However, it noted that proceeding with a “no uplift” option on resale would be consistent with existing legislation in Ireland and New South Wales, Australia.

According to CMA analysis, typical mark-ups on tickets sold on the secondary market are often more than 50 per cent and investigations by Trading Standards have uncovered evidence of tickets being resold for up to six times their original cost.

“The resale price should be capped at the price paid – including booking fee – with a small fixed admin fee”

Face-value European Alliance for Ticketing (FEAT) director Sam Shemtob notes that talk of a UK price cap was mooted as far back as 2011 by Labour MP Sharon Hodgson, chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Ticket Abuse.

“She’s kept ticket resale as an issue throughout the years of being in opposition, and it’s fantastic that the UK could be close to a historic change in the law in this respect,” says Shemtob. “Our position is in our name – that’s to say the resale price should be capped at the price paid – including booking fee – with a small fixed admin fee chargeable on top for the platform handling the transaction.”

Other plans being considered by the government include limiting the number of tickets resellers can list to the maximum they are allowed to purchase on the primary market.

In addition, there are proposals to increase the accountability of ticket resale websites and apps, creating new legal obligations so that they can be held responsible by Trading Standards and the Competition and Market Authority for the accuracy of information they provide to fans. The government also plans to review existing legislation to strengthen consumer protection, including stronger fines and a new licensing regime for resale platforms.

Adam Webb, campaign manager for anti-touting pressure group FanFair Alliance, says the solution should be “simple, palatable and effective”. He also warns of the need to close off “all potential loopholes, and ensure offshore ‘uncapped’ ticket touting websites cannot circumvent the rules”.

“Promisingly, it feels the Competition & Markets Authority are thinking along very similar lines here, and we remain optimistic this consultation will lead to some genuinely positive outcomes,” he finishes.

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The UK Government has announced it will be investigating dynamic ticket pricing for concert tickets, following a weekend of controversy over the blockbuster Oasis reunion shows.

There has been widespread media coverage of fan anger after ticket buyers who had queued for several hours were offered tickets for more than twice the advertised face value. 

The new UK Government was due to launch a consultation into the secondary ticketing market in the Autumn, with widespread expectation that there would be proposals to limit resale to a little over face value. Now it has responded to the Oasis controversy by saying that it would be adding the use of dynamic pricing into the consultation.

In a statement to IQ, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy MP said: “After the incredible news of Oasis’ return, it’s depressing to see vastly inflated prices excluding ordinary fans from having a chance of enjoying their favourite band live.

“Working with artists, industry and fans we can create a fairer system that ends the scourge of touts, rip-off resales and ensures tickets at fair prices.”

“This Government is committed to putting fans back at the heart of music. So we will include issues around the transparency and use of dynamic pricing, including the technology around queuing systems which incentivise it, in our forthcoming consultation on consumer protections for ticket resales.

“Working with artists, industry and fans we can create a fairer system that ends the scourge of touts, rip-off resales and ensures tickets at fair prices.”

On Saturday more than 10 million people reportedly tried to access tickets to the first Oasis shows in more than 15 years, taking place next summer in Dublin, Edinburgh, Manchester, Cardiff and London. 

By the end of Saturday, all of the shows had sold out with reports emerging about the deployment of ‘in demand’ pricing with customers being given a very short period of time to decide if they wanted the higher priced tickets.

In Ireland, the Tánaiste (deputy prime minister) said the prices were “shocking” and involved “a kind of runaway inflation”.

Mr Martin told RTÉ on Sunday there was still time for “redemption” from the organisers.

“There are a lot, a lot of disappointed people out there from the perspective of what they would see as price gouging,” he added.

Ticketmaster, Oasis and the tour’s promoters – Live Nation, MCD Productions, SJM Concerts and DF Concerts – have not commented on the implementation of dynamic pricing on the shows. 

However, Niels Henrik Sodemann, co-founder of Queue-it, the technology partner behind Ticketmaster’s queueing system, said the day went well from a technology perspective.

“At the end of the day, the only way all Oasis fans can be satisfied is substantially more opportunities for fans to experience them live”

“Although the public sale was on a Saturday, it was just another day in the office for us. Substantially more demand on a single customer on Saturday, but less than normal weekdays combined across our customers,” he said. 

“At the end of the day, the only way all Oasis fans can be satisfied is substantially more opportunities for fans to experience them live. In times where many artists are struggling making a living, it is great to see that some of the lighthouses can bring dreams and enthusiasm into the industry.”

While dynamic ticketing is a commonly used tool in North America, it has been less frequently used in the UK and Europe to date. The practice hit headlines in the UK earlier this month following the presale for Sabrina Carpenter’s 2025 tour when tickets were advertised for £220 or more within minutes of tickets going on sale.

The above face-value prices for Oasis tickets has also seen one of the tour’s official resale partners, Twickets, lower its service fees after fans posted screenshots of fees in excess of £100. 

Richard Davies, founder of Twickets, told IQ: “Due to the exceptional demand for the Oasis tour in 2025, Twickets have taken the decision to lower our booking fee to 10% + a 1% transactional fee (to cover bank charges) for all buyers of their tickets on our platform. In addition we have introduced a cap of £25 per ticket for these shows. Sellers of tickets already sell free of any Twickets charge.” 

The UK Government consultation on ticketing will launch in the coming months, with consumer groups now seeking to link dynamic pricing in the primary sector with secondary market activity. 

Dynamic ticketing was defended by Bruce Springsteen in November 2022 after tickets for his summer tour were advertised for $5,000 by Ticketmaster in the US. “I know it was unpopular with some fans,” he told Rolling Stone, “But if there’s any complaints on the way out, you can have your money back.”

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Twickets founder Richard Davies has spoken to IQ after the firm was named as the official ticket resale platform for Oasis’ 2025 UK & Ireland reunion tour.

The fan-to-fan resale site has previously partnered with both Liam and Noel Gallagher on their respective solo shows, as well as acts including Arctic Monkeys, Foo Fighters, Adele, Queen, Take That and Stormzy.

Strict anti-touting measures are being put in place for the Oasis shows, with tickets permitted to be resold for no more than face value and booking fees. Davies says he is thrilled the band’s representatives Ignition Management opted to partner with Twickets on one of the most anticipated tours in British history.

“It will be the biggest tour we’ve ever worked on,” says Davies. “There’s no two ways about it; it’s fantastic, so I’m delighted and very thankful. It’s great they’ve taken the bull by the horns and made a statement about resale this early – before tickets have even gone on sale.”

On top of the initial 14 dates, Oasis have already announced an extra three shows for Manchester’s Heaton Park (16 July), London’s Wembley Stadium (30 July) and Edinburgh’s Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium (12 August), amid “phenomenal” interest in the Gallagher brothers’ first gigs together since 2009.

Ticket prices for the concerts, which go on general sale this Saturday and are being promoted by SJM Concerts, Live Nation, DF Concerts and MCD Productions, were released today. Tickets for most shows are priced £65-185 (€77-220), excluding fees, with premium options also available, while tickets for the Dublin dates start at €73.

“Generally speaking, most of our transactions and trading are done within the last week before a show”

Given the predicted demand for tickets, Davies expects to see a shift from Twickets’ usual sales pattern.

“Generally speaking, most of our transactions and trading are done within the last week before a show,” he explains. “It has always been that way really, because people’s plans change last minute and they just need to get some money back, but I think Oasis will break that rule a little bit.

“What I think will happen this weekend is that people will rush to buy tickets and then find their mates have also bought them for the same night, so they won’t need as many as they first thought. So we’ll perhaps see a bit of activity immediately and in the next week or so.”

Davies also comments on the unusual activity seen on the site relating to the recently concluded European leg of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour.

“Twickets averages about 3-4% of the total primary tickets sold being listed for resale,” he says. “For some tours – for example Arctic Monkeys or Foo Fighters – we’ll get up to 5% as those artists are very conscious of ensuring fans don’t get ripped off. As a result, they make it clear to their audiences to trade at face value only.

“For Taylor Swift, well under 1% of primary tickets found their way [to Twickets], which is pretty unique. An important point here is we’ve encountered more attempted listings above face value than for any other tour since we started. In fact, they represented the majority of listings we’ve received. But obviously those were turned away, which goes a long way to explaining the low volume of trading.”

“We’ve been profitable every year since the pandemic and have grown in terms of revenue”

Founded in 2014, Twickets has received funding from management companies of artists such as One Direction, Arctic Monkeys, 5 Seconds of Summer and Royal Blood. The revenue model sees buyers pay a standard booking fee of 10-15% of the ticket price, and Davies says the firm is now firmly back on track following a sticky spell during Covid.

“The last two or three years have been fantastic,” he reports. “The pandemic came on and we thought, ‘We could be in trouble.’ Luckily, we relied on the furlough scheme but sadly had to let some people go and we got 2% of our usual revenue through the door for the year. I still don’t know to this day who the 2% were, trading tickets in a pandemic, but we got a few, so we had a tiny amount of revenue, but we survived.

“Having come through the other side, we’ve been profitable every year since and have grown in terms of revenue. Last year, we grew 60% and this year, it’s going to be more like about 40% year-on-year. We’ve benefited from the backlog of shows that have taken place since the pandemic, so that had a big impact. But generally speaking, there’s been an acceleration in terms of word of mouth.”

He continues: “We may well invest further into mainland Europe and try and increase our presence there. But for now, the international side of our business is more about supporting our UK and US partners that are on tour.”

Twickets has recently expanded into theatre, working with LW Theatres and Ambassador Theatre Group, and also launched a partnership with personal safeguarding app Help Me Angela.

“We’re looking at partnerships to spread the word about us, but also about others that we feel are doing an interesting job and a complementary job as well – one that helps our audience,” says Davies. “It was an important campaign to support and make people aware of.”

“We were very much part of that initial campaign to bring about change”

Meanwhile, Davies says he is “very confident” that the UK’s new Labour government’s pledge to introduce new consumer protections on ticket resale will be followed through.

“I’m hoping it will be in time for the Oasis tour,” he adds. “[MP] Sharon Hodgson has done an incredible job over the years in driving this campaign, as have FanFair Alliance, and they’ve really made incredible progress to ensure that Labour included a cap on resale as part of their manifesto. So I fully believe that will be actioned now. I don’t know any timings, but I’m hopeful it will be sooner rather than later.”

In conclusion, Davies is happy that Twickets has played its part in helping to effect change in the resale market.

“With FanFair Alliance, we were very much part of that initial campaign to bring about change,” he says. “I think there’s a different mindset now. Up until we came along, Viagogo, StubHub and others were saying, ‘Resale can’t work unless we allow an uplift in the ticket price. It’s just not financially viable.’ Hopefully we’ve shown that isn’t the case, and that it can be a viable proposition to cap at face value.

“We’ve had others come to the market since that are following that model as well, so hopefully we’ve had a positive impact.”

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Oasis have announced a partnership with Twickets, which will serve as the official ticket resale platform for their 2025 UK reunion tour.

Demand is expected to be enormous for the band’s first concerts since splitting up in 2009, with strict anti-touting measures being put in place in a bid to ensure tickets are resold for no more than face value and booking fees.

Tickets go on general sale on Saturday (31 August) and are limited to four per household.

“Ticket resale is permitted at no more than the price you paid (face value + booking fees),” it states on the Oasis website. “Please only use the official resale partners www.twickets.live and Ticketmaster. Selling tickets through unauthorised resale platforms will breach these T&Cs and those tickets may be cancelled.”

Fan-to-fan resale site Twickets has previously partnered with both Liam and Noel Gallagher on their respective solo shows, as well as acts including Foo Fighters, Queen, Take That and Stormzy.

“We’re expecting huge demand for the Oasis tour next year, and particularly as the UK dates are nearly a year away with that comes the fact that some of those tickets purchased this Saturday might not be right for that person when the time comes around,” says Twickets founder Richard Davies.

“We often see tickets resold due to summer holidays being booked, or if groups of friends all try and get tickets, then some of those friends may want to sell and buy for dates their friends are attending. Our platform offers a way for fans to sell their tickets to other genuine fans, and avoids people having to use sites that allow inflated prices, which the artists and events companies don’t benefit from.”

Oasis have added that despite speculation, they will not be performing at Glastonbury or any other festival next year

The Gallagher brothers confirmed yesterday that they will be reuniting for a run of stadium and outdoor shows in Cardiff, Manchester, London and Edinburgh, as well as Dublin, Ireland, next summer in what will will be their only European shows of 2025. The concerts are being promoted by SJM Concerts, Live Nation, DF Concerts and MCD Productions.

Plans are underway for OASIS LIVE ’25 to go to other continents later next year. However, Oasis have added that despite speculation, they will not be performing at Glastonbury or any other festival next year.

The UK’s new Labour government has pledged to introduce new consumer protections on ticket resale and will launch a consultation in the autumn.

“We’re calling on the Labour government to use the Oasis UK tour as an opportunity to put their party manifesto plans into action,” adds Davies. “Tickets are not an ‘asset’ as such, to be traded at will, but a licence to see a show. They are generally priced at a low level to open that event up to everyone, not just to those with the deepest pockets. And so exploiting those prices just for the opportunity to profiteer is in our view wrong, and means that genuine fans often miss out.

“Labour’s policy to end inflated pricing would mean fans have more money in their pockets to attend more events with better live entertainment experiences, and they’ll also spend more on event merchandise. That’s good for the industry too.”

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Twickets founder Richard Davies has revealed to IQ that the company’s revenues from international territories have doubled from pre-pandemic levels.

The face value or less fan-to-fan resale site is coming off its best-ever quarter in the midst of a huge summer for live music in the UK. In excess of 300,000 tickets were listed on the platform from May to July, with gross revenue up 140% compared to the same three months in 2019, with single tickets making up 40% of sales.

According to the firm, 74% of ticket sales now come in the first 48 hours post-listing, while two-thirds of tickets sold are within a week of the event itself.

“Post-pandemic there’s been a very positive impact on resale activity, as reflected in our recent results,” Davies tells IQ. “With so many more events scheduled –and rescheduled – coupled with fans changing their own plans, we’ve seen a real surge in trading.

“With the majority of tickets listed on secondary platforms coming from ‘brokers’, fans have come down on the side of our ethical approach to resale.”

The company says that 1.5 million unique users visited the Twickets platform during the three-month period, while a record 18,500 alerts were set up for the Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concert, which takes place at Wembley Stadium on 3 September. Twickets is the benefit show’s official resale partner and will be donating its fee from the event.

“Growth has been particularly strong in mainland Europe”

Established in 2011, the London-headquartered company works with more than 300 live entertainment partners in the UK including venues, artists, promoters, festivals and ticketing companies, and confirmed a link-up with the UK’s Music Venue Trust earlier this year, with a number of significant new partnerships to be announced soon.

Backed by several high-profile managers, agents and promoters, Twickets also has local operations in the US, Spain and Australia, with further overseas expansion plans on the horizon.

“Revenue from international territories has doubled since pre-pandemic levels, and growth has been particularly strong in mainland Europe,” says Davies. “As a result, we’re now focused on building a local Twickets team in key territories there, notably Germany and France.”

The firm, which has previously partnered on tours by artists such as Adele and Ed Sheeran, used the downtime inadvertently provided by Covid-19 to enhance its services.

“We invested a lot of time re-engineering our apps during lockdown, and have subsequently witnessed a large increase in adoption rate,” says Davies. “Over 70% of users now access Twickets through mobile.

“Furthermore, the introduction of an ‘events happening near you’ feature in the app has increased last minute purchases by those seeking inspiration for a local night out.”

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The UK’s Music Venue Trust (MVT) has confirmed a partnership with capped ticket resale marketplace Twickets.

Established in 2011, Twickets works with more than 300 live entertainment partners in the UK including venues, artists, promoters, festivals and ticketing companies.

“We are delighted to become a partner of MVT,” says Twickets founder Richard Davies. “This is a key development for us as it further embeds the business as the legitimate face of resale, working to bring fairness and transparency to event-goers everywhere.

“Our goal is always to improve the ticket buying experience”

“Our goal is always to improve the ticket buying experience, and we look forward to collaborating with all members of MVT to prevent blatant profiteering in the secondary ticket market, which not only harms fans but damages the industry as a whole.”

A charitable organisation, the MVT was founded in January 2014 to help protect, secure and improve music venues in the UK.

Mark Davyd, MVT founder and CEO, adds: “We are really pleased to welcome Twickets as one of MVT’s partners. Their mission to enable fans to resell tickets they can no longer use for the price they paid or less aligns well with MVT’s goals to keep tickets out of the hands of touts and in the hands of genuine grassroots gig going fans. Customers can buy from Twickets with the reassurance that they are supporting grassroots music venues across the UK.”

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Twickets has been appointed the official resale partner of SJM Concerts’ Gigs and Tours.

The partnership with SJM, one of the UK’s leading concert promoters, will provide a fan-friendly resale option for all tickets purchased through Gigsandtours.com, allowing users to list tickets for sale via Twickets’ website or mobile app at no more than the price originally paid.

Launched in 2016, Twickets has since served as the official resale platform for leading artists including Ed Sheeran, Stormzy, Foo Fighters, Arctic Monkeys, Mumford & Sons and Elton John. It now attracts more than three million users to its ticket marketplace every year.

“Providing a safe, secure and easy way to resell tickets is best practice”

“We continue to strive to not only offer our customers an efficient and straightforward purchasing experience, but also help them when things don’t go to plan,” explains SJM Concerts’ Matt Woolliscroft. “Providing a safe, secure and easy way to resell tickets is best practice and yet another step Gigsandtours.com is taking to innovate and improve concertgoing.”

Twickets founder Richard Davies says: “The UK is in the midst of a market shift away from rip-off secondary ticketing platforms and towards consumer-friendly resale services. I am proud Twickets is at the forefront of this change, and delighted we can bring our expertise in resale to such an important player in the UK music scene. Our goal is always to improve the ticket buying experience, fill venues and keep customers happy.”

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