Live Nation had moderate year-over-year growth, with the release of its year-end report that saw total revenue of $23 billion, operating income of $825 million and adjusted operating income of $2.15 billion.
According to the report, the 2024 year-end earnings and increases were notable, yet didn’t hit comparable percentage shifts from years prior. This year’s $23 billion was significant, yet a small increase over last year’s $22.7 billion, which was up 36% from 2022.
Adjusted operating income was $2.15 billion, an increase over 2023’s $1.86 billion. While the jump in AOI may be substantial, it’s worth noting that 2023’s AOI was up 32% over the previous year, suggesting that growth in the live event space may be slowing after a post-pandemic boom.
Concert revenue totaled $19 billion, up two percent. The report points out that concert attendance increased by 4%, with 151 million fans attending over 50,000 Live Nation events. Comparatively, attendance hit 145.8 million last year, an increase of 20.3% over the previous year. Sponsorship adjusted operating income was $764 million, up 13 percent; last year, its AOI rose 14 percent to $675.1 million.
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At Live Nation’s Ticketmaster division, annual AOI margin was consistent with prior years, while Q4 revenue was up 14% year-over-year at $841 million. Q4 AOI was $311 million, up 32%.
The company is forecasting continued growth through 2025, with global stadium pipeline up 60%; 65 million concert tickets have already been sold. Transacted Ticketmaster tickets for 2025 shows are up 3% at 106 million, while committed sponsorship is up double-digits as 75% of the year is sold.
“2024 was live music’s biggest year yet, as artists toured the world and fans turned out in record numbers,” said Michael Rapino, president and CEO of Live Nation Entertainment. “2025 is shaping up to be even bigger thanks to a deep global concert pipeline, with more stadium shows on the books than ever before. To help artists perform to fans everywhere, we remain focused on building new music-centric venues, which make more live music memories possible and help drive our double-digit operating income and AOI growth in 2025, and compound at this level for years to come. At the same time, we’re investing back into the industry for those who create the music, as our investments in artists have more than doubled in the last five years, and we will continue to find new ways to support them while enhancing the fan experience.”