Billboard requires a JavaScript enabled browser to get the full experience

Bon Jovi Scores 2008's Top-Grossing Tour

Comments

by Ray Waddell, Nashville  |   December 11, 2008 12:01 EST

Bon Jovi

Bon Jovi's Lost Highway tour tops the list of the biggest tours for 2008, based on data reported to Billboard Boxscore from Nov. 14, 2007, through Nov. 11, 2008. The trek, promoted in North America and Europe by AEG Live, grossed $210.6 million and drew 2,157,675 fans.

In second place is Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band's Magic tour, which grossed $204.5 million for the period. Springsteen reported another $31 million for last year, taking his two-year Boxscore total to more than $235 million.

Rounding out the top 10 are Madonna ($162 million for the still-underway Sticky & Sweet tour), the Police ($150 million on the second leg of their reunion tour), Celine Dion ($91 million), Kenny Chesney ($86 million), Neil Diamond ($81.2 million), Spice Girls ($70 million), Eagles ($56.6 million) and Rascal Flatts ($55.8 million).

The Spice Girls' 17 sellouts at the O2 Arena last December-January were the highest-grossing engagement of the year, taking in $33.8 million and drawing 256,647. Other top Boxscores for the year were Celine Dion at the Bell Centre in Montreal ($23.1 million), Madonna at Stade de France in Paris ($17.6 million), Bonnaroo in Manchester, Tenn. (about $17 million), and Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. ($14.2 million).
 
For the overall touring industry, grosses reported to Billboard Boxscore totaled slightly less than $4 billion worldwide, the most ever for a year and up almost 13% over last year.

But global reported concert attendance is virtually flat, with 6% fewer shows. And North American concert attendance is down nearly 2%, after a nearly 20% decrease last year, continuing a troubling trend. Better news is evident on a show-by-show basis; the average box office gross in North America is up 18% and average attendance is up 6.3%, reflecting that some of the attendance decline can be attributed to a decrease in the overall show count.

For more of Billboard.com's 2008 Year in Music special section, please click here.

Up for Discussion

Post Comment

Sort By

More Features

All features

Get your recommended daily allowance of music news in one two-minute video dose.

The Chart Game: Can you predict the hotness?

Win Seven Nirvana Albums

Thanks For Joining Billboard

Log in to create your profile, speak your mind and connect with listeners like you.

Why Join ?

Don't just hear it. Live it. Go deeper than a casual listen: Voice your feelings, build a profile around your favorite music, connect with people who share your passions and discover new ones. Sign up for free.

Complete Your Registration at Billboard.com!

Haven't Joined Yet ?

For the full Billboard experience, you need to be a member. Sign up. It's free.

Join Billboard

Forgot your password?

Enter the e-mail address you used to sign up and we will email you the password .

Email Sent !

Your password has been sent to the email address you provided. Please sign in below :

Log In

Forget your password ?

Action Successful

We'd love to hear your feedback on the new Billboard.com!

Whether it's a feature request or a bug

We want to hear from you. Please use this form to anonymously give us your input.

open
close

CLICK PLAY TO RESUME