The Vienna leg of Taylor Swift’s blockbuster Eras tour has been cancelled following the arrest of two individuals over an apparent plot to attack a public event in the Austrian capital.
Concert organizers Barracuda Music announced the cancellation late on Wednesday, after Austrian authorities revealed the arrest of a 19-year-old man allegedly planning an Islamist attack in the Vienna region, with Swift’s concerts being the “focus” of the plot.
Franz Ruf, Austria’s top security chief, reported that the man, who had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) group in recent weeks, was detained early Wednesday in Lower Austria, about an hour from Vienna. Ruf stated, “We have established corresponding preparatory acts and also that there is a focus of the 19-year-old perpetrator on the Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna.” The man, an Austrian citizen, is believed to have been radicalized online. Chemical substances were seized at his home and are being evaluated.
A second person, believed to have been in contact with the suspect, was arrested in Vienna.
Swift was scheduled to perform at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. In an Instagram post late on Wednesday, Barracuda Music stated: “With confirmation from government officials of a planned terrorist attack at Ernst Happel Stadium, we have no choice but to cancel the three scheduled shows for everyone’s safety.”
The concerts had sold out, with an estimated 170,000 fans expected to attend. Organizers assured that all ticket holders would receive refunds.
Swift fans expressed their devastation on social media. One fan tweeted, “I’m so upset. I’ve been looking forward to it for over a year. Taylor Swift in my hometown. And now it’s not happening.”
In the official “Swifties” fan group on WhatsApp, administrators were overwhelmed with thousands of messages.
Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer posted on social network X that the cancellation of the concerts was a “bitter disappointment for all fans in Austria.” He added that the situation was very serious but noted that thanks to intensive cooperation between police, Austrian, and foreign intelligence, “the threat could be recognized early on, tackled, and a tragedy prevented.”
This incident recalls the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing, where 22 people were killed at an Ariana Grande concert by a suicide bomber, and the 2020 Vienna attack where a convicted IS sympathizer killed four and wounded 23 before being shot dead by police.
