VIENNA – Expensive tickets to three sold-out Taylor Swift shows in Vienna. Hundreds of euros, if not more, were spent on flights and hotels in one of Europe’s most expensive capitals. Tens of thousands of Swifties, adorned with homemade friendship bracelets, devastated by cancellations of three sold-out Eras Tour shows in Austria, after authorities thwarted an apparent attack plan.
Austrian security officials said two young men wanted to carry out an attack outside the stadium, killing as many people as possible using knives or homemade explosives. The venue was empty on Thursday morning except for media footage outside.
Both suspects appeared to be inspired by the Islamic State group and al Qaeda, authorities said, and investigators found evidence of the militant groups’ propaganda and other materials in their homes. Authorities have not released additional details, but it does not appear that the pair were in contact or coordinating with the militant groups.
The 19-year-old main suspect also posted online an oath of loyalty to the current leader of the Islamic State group, authorities said. The names of the suspects have not been released in accordance with Austrian privacy rules.
The news shook the superstar’s fans, many of whom took to social media to express their devastation at missing one of the shows. Some posting on social platform X lamented months of now wasted effort choosing fashionable outfits for the performance and making friendship bracelets. The beaded bracelets, typically with song titles or popular Swift phrases, are often exchanged at concerts with strangers.
Other fans begged online for tickets to Fast upcoming shows. She is set to perform at London’s Wembley Stadium in five shows between August 15 and 20 to conclude the European leg of her record-breaking Eras Tour.
Some North American fans have traveled abroad on “tourist tourism ” – a pattern that emerged during Beyoncé’s career Renaissance World Tour – after realizing it was tighter restrictions on ticket fees and resales in Europe have made seeing Swift perform abroad no more expensive – and potentially cheaper – than watching her closer to home.
Annmarie Timmins, a journalist who traveled from the United States for Thursday’s program, said she and her husband were waiting for the subway after dinner when they heard the news.
“I can’t even believe it,” she said. “There was a girl with her mother who looked so sad – even more than me. I gave her one of my bracelets. I wanted to hug her.
Europe is also in love with the American superstar. The German city of Gelsenkirchen even renamed itself “Swiftkirchen” ahead of their shows in mid-July.
For Fredrikke Blekastad, a Swift fan from Norway, it was her second attempt at a concert. The first was canceled because of the pandemic.
“We had planned to wake up really early, get in line and get right to the front to see her,” Blekastad told Norwegian broadcaster NRK, but “nothing would come of it either.”
Other Norwegian fans, Jenny Moltubakk and Marie Hov Aanæs, told NRK about their disappointment.
“At first we were in shock when we saw the message, I didn’t really believe it,” Moltubakk told the broadcaster. “It’s really strange when something you’ve been looking forward to for a whole year is suddenly cancelled.”
“I’m very disappointed, to be honest, but I understand that safety is the most important thing,” she added.
Aanæs said “we should ‘Shake It Off,’” to quote Swift’s 2014 hit. “We’re actually really grateful that security was tight enough for them to be able to figure this out,” Aanæs told NRK.
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Dazio reported from Berlin. Associated Press writers Geir Moulson and Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin and Jan M. Olsen in Copenhagen, Denmark, contributed to this report.
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