Taylor Swift’s shows worth over €60 million to Irish economy

Taylor Swift’s upcoming shows in Croke Park are going to be worth approximately €60 million to the Irish economy.

The US country-turned pop-star will be headlining two shows at Croke Park on 15 and 16 June. They are her first ever stadium shows in Ireland having previously sold-out The 3Arena multiple times.

“They’re already in Ireland. They’re actually taking the time to see the country in advance ahead of the shows,” said Justin Green, an MCD representative. “In total we expect 136,000 people across the two nights. That’s approximately 68,000 a night. To put that into economic terms, it’s worth over €60 million in additional revenue to the city of Dublin and the wider Leinster area.”

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Speaking at a safety conference in Croke Park yesterday, MCD’s event controller and project manager for Swift’s shows, Eamonn Fox, made it clear that Taylor Swift was planning a spectacle for her Irish fans. The stage for Friday’s show is currently being built.

“There’s over 80 trucks for production and it’s one of the bigger productions that I’ve seen come into the stadium,” he said. “It’s a seated audience on the pitch so that two thirds of the pitch is fully seated and the rest of it is standing at the back”

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“It’s only three dates that she’s doing in Europe - 3 cities as such and six dates,” said Green. “Over 20% of the people attending will be from outside the Republic of Ireland so it’s quite a huge number of people to travel from all over Europe.”

“We’ve sold tickets all over the world for people to attend and one of the biggest markets is people coming from the States for this show.”

Despite still being only 28 years old, Swift has been a household name for over 10 years. She is one of the most successful solo female artists in the world and

“Taylor Swift is the only female artist to play two nights here in Croke Park since the redevelopment of the stadium,” said Tony McGuinness, the operations manager for Croke Park. “We want everyone coming to the stadium to have a safe and comfortable night.”

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This weekend will be a busy for gigs in Dublin as Liam Gallagher will be playing Malahide Castle on Friday, The National play Energia Park on both Friday and Saturday while Nile Rodgers and Chic play Malahide Castle on Saturday evening.

Doors at Croke Park will open at 17.45. English pop-singer Charli XCX and former Fifth Harmony member Camila Cabello will be the supporting acts for the two nights.

Limited tickets are still available for Taylor Swift’s two Croke Park shows here:www.ticketmaster.ie