Dua Lipa performs during a concert as part of the “Radical Optimism Tour” at Estadio Mas Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti on Nov. 8, 2025 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Tomas Cuesta | Getty Images
The U.K. government is set to ban the resale of live-event tickets for above face value on Wednesday. The move covers concerts, major sports, and theater, according to multiple British press reports.
The move was not a surprise, as the country’s Labor Party under Prime Minister Keir Starmer had signaled earlier support for a crackdown on ticket practices, citing the issue of inflated resale prices as a significant consumer protection issue.
Dozens of artists including Sam Fender, Dua Lipa and Coldplay signed a recent open letter urging Starmer to move ahead with promises and implement a cap on resale price tickets.
Housing Secretary Steve Reed told BBC Breakfast that the government, “was committed to outlawing it.”
New legislation is expected to include caps on platform fees and price limits to avoid any workarounds that artificially inflate prices using new methods.
Ticket reseller StubHub shares closed down near 6% on Tuesday after reports of the impending ban. Its shares have fallen 37% over the past week after it failed to provide guidance when it reported earnings last week.
Shares of Live Nation Entertainment, which owns Ticketmaster, were unaffected. Live Nation released a statement ahead of the expected U.K. ban saying it “fully supports the UK government’s plan” and noted it already limits all resale in the U.K. to face value prices. “This is another major step forward for fans – cracking down on exploitative touting to help keep live events accessible. We encourage others around the world to adopt similar fan-first policies.”
The move comes as U.S. regulators have scrutinized bot-based ticket harvesting, and several investigations have focused on deceptive fee structures and inflated resale pricing. For Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour,” the average resale ticket was over $1,000.
Swift producer and fellow musician Jack Antonoff recently slammed Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino for saying at a CNBC event that concert tickets were underpriced.
“Answer is simple: Selling a ticket for more than its face value should be illegal,” he wrote.
The Federal Trade Commission sued Live Nation and Ticketmaster in September, alleging illegal ticket resale practices. Last year, the Justice Department sued to break up Live Nation and Ticketmaster over alleged antitrust violations, claiming the company had too large a monopoly in the ticketing industry, a move that came after widespread fan complaints after a botched rollout for tickets to Swift’s Eras Tour.
Pressure has increased for more transparent ticket markets across live music, sports, and large-scale touring.
