⁠“This is so ridiculous” — Fans upset over ticket prices and unavailability for Black Sabbath’s final show

Many fans are upset about the cost and availability of tickets for Black Sabbath's final performance at Birmingham's Villa Park. The band's original lineup will perform together for the first time in more than 20 years at the much-awaited occasion, which is scheduled for 5 July 2025. However, hundreds of people were left without tickets as they sold out in only 16 minutes, leading to a user commenting ⁠“This is so ridiculous”.

On February 14, tickets for the band's last performance went on sale. They ranged in price from £197.50 to an outrageous £834, plus other costs. Additionally, a £2.75 processing fee was applied to each order. Although pre-sales were held earlier in the week, there was such a high demand for the general sale at 10 a.m. GMT that hundreds of eager purchasers flooded Ticketmaster's online queue.

Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Alice In Chains, Gojira, and more iconic rock bands will also perform at the Back to the Beginning festival. Many fans expressed dissatisfaction with the price system, claiming that the excessive fees made it almost impossible for regular fans to attend, despite the event's importance.

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Fans reactions to the Black Sabbath tickets

Fans who either had trouble obtaining tickets thought the pricing was too high or had problems with scammers and resale platforms were all over social media, especially X. Many ardent Black Sabbath fans voiced their displeasure, claiming that normal fans could hardly attend due to the huge demand and exorbitant prices.

Here are some common reactions,

Some fans struggled to get tickets. When tickets sold out in a matter of minutes, fans who tried to purchase them online through Ticketmaster's system complained about lengthy wait times, technical difficulties, and disappointment.

A user vented his frustration after not being able to obtain the tickets,

"This is what happens now I finally got through to the Black Sabbath ticket page. I keep refreshing the page and seats occasionally come up and then immediately disappear."

"Attempts to get Black Sabbath tickets: 4...Tickets procured: 0"- added another

while some complained about the exorbitant prices which ranged from £197.50 to an astonishing £834, a user commented,

“I’m not willing to pay these prices for Black Sabbath Back To The Beginning Tickets”

while another joined in to complain,

"Didn’t realise you had to take out a f***** mortgage to buy Black Sabbath tickets"

a user vented out their frustration at resellers selling at high prices

"if u bought black sabbath tickets just to sell them I hope u fall off a cliff x"

while another user complained about everything going wrong, from failure to long waits to high reselling prices.

"Went in for Black Sabbath tickets instantly today, yesterday and Wednesday. Not a chance on either attempt. Started 49,000 in the queue today. Then ticketmaster just froze at 36,000. Already being resold at stupid prices. F****** w****** the lot of them."

While almost everyone complained about the ticket prices and unavailability, there were some users who shared their success stories, a user shared,

"I’ve spent ALL week trying ALL the different presales to get tickets for Black Sabbath. Tried again this morning, knowing chances were slim, joined the queue with 39,000 in front of me & after an hour gave in...Gf just sent me this screenshot...I CAN’T F****** BREATHE."

a user joined in and shared their excitement,

"Can’t believe I managed to get Black Sabbath tickets. Could have got the Golden Circle too but wasn’t paying £400+. £250 for Pitch Standing seems reasonable with the lineup"

while another user shared their success story,

"Got my Black Sabbath tickets this morning with zero fuss whatsoever. Total smooth sailing on Ticketmaster...Got online early for the 10am sale, entered the virtual waiting room with exactly 10mins to go, got my verification code in seconds, hit the queue and by 10:06am had tix"

Resale announcements, at significantly higher rates, started to surface online almost immediately after the tickets sold out. Some users cautioned about scammers selling fake tickets. A user shared,

"Don’t fall for the black sabbath tickets scam. They don’t have tickets to sell and they’re a scammer. Even more obvious since they deleted the post I commented on and published a new one. Just report them all."

While another user shared the details of a scammer,

"Here are the bank details of one of the attempted Sabbath ticket scammers btw."

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Black Sabbath's final performance

The band's most recognizable lineup- Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward will make a historic reunion during the final show. Before rejoining the band, Osbourne had previously taken a break from performing because of his fight with Parkinson's illness and would play a solo set. The concert comprises members of Limp Bizkit, and Van Halen. The Smashing Pumpkins and Faith No More is also on the event's schedule.

Speaking to NME, Sharon Osbourne said the concert was more of a

"Celebration of the old music that still lives on. It’s about appreciating the legacy these guys created while they’re still here,"

Three organizations that are significant to Osbourne and the band- Brighton Children's Hospital, Acorn Children's Hospice, and Cure Parkinson's- shall receive all event proceeds. Additionally, Sharon Osbourne disclosed that Tom Morello, the musical director for the concert, has been instrumental in organizing the event's performances.