The UK’s biggest arenas are facing some of the sharpest rises in business rates in the country next year, leading to questions about the future of the live music scene.
The increases in rateable values (RVs) for venues including London’s The O2 and Wembley SSE Arena, Manchester’s Co-op Live, Leeds’ First Direct Bank Arena and more were recently revealed for 2026.
Now, it looks like many of the venues around the country face their business rates bill rising by more than double, with Wembley Arena’s assessment showing an increase of 300 per cent.
It comes as Chancellor Rachel Reeves put forward huge increases in the property taxes required from performance spaces. According to new figures from global tax firm Ryan, iconic arenas around the country face increases of up to £1.85million in annual bills.
A spokesperson for Ryan, Alex Probyn, outlined that the new figures are based on the operating conditions seen in 2024, whereas the previous, lower valuations, were based on the period of the COVID-19 pandemic, when there was a significant decline in demand for live music.
“The 2023 rating list reflected conditions in April 2021, when most venues were shut or heavily restricted,” he said. “The 2026 list reflects April 2024 – a period of full reopening. That dramatic shift in trading conditions is why many arenas are seeing such significant increases.”
As reported by Business Matters, transitional relief in England means that increases for these large venues will be capped at 30 per cent between 2026 and 2027, there 25 per cent plus inflation between 2028 and 2029. It also shares that the total liabilities over this period may be far higher than suggested now, as the caps compound annually.
The new rates come as live music venues have already been facing strain in recent years due to economic uncertainty, rising costs, overcoming long-term hindrances from the pandemic, and more.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Music Venue Trust (MVT) CEO Mark Davyd also outlined how the new financial pressures will likely lead to ticket prices for live events rising, as the impact will “have to be passed on”.
He also warned that it will likely make it harder for artists to make ends meet as there will be higher costs for them to put on live shows – potentially leading to talent cutting back on UK dates or skipping performances in the country entirely.
“People see these giant events, they see the flashing lights and all the incredible production there is at this level. It’s being done on a very small profit margin, that is the reality,” Davyd said.
NME has reached out to spokespeople at the UK government for comment about the business rates, and the concerns about what they may have on the country’s live music sector.
The reports of rising operating costs come after Wolf Alice‘s Joff Oddie and various industry leaders appeared at a government hearing into the state of UK grassroots music in May. Here, they shared how it is harder than ever for both new and established artists in the UK to make ends meet when it comes to touring.
“When my band Wolf Alice were doing the grassroots touring scene 12 years ago, it was unbelievably tight,” Oddie said. “For years, it was a loss-leader – and that’s typically how it goes. We would sleep on people’s floors when we were outside of London […] So 12 years ago the numbers didn’t stack up, and now it’s unbelievable.”
He added: “[There are] a huge amount of things that artists have to pay for in order to go out on the road. We just about made it work. I can honestly say, I’m not sure how Wolf Alice would make it work today.”
In a bid to help support grassroots music spaces that allow new talent to rise up the ranks, there has been a push for the UK’s arena and stadiums to introduce a £1 ticket levy – where £1 from every ticket sold to shows at those venues gets invested to help support their smaller brethren. It is similar to the model seen in the Premier League of football, and is already in use in several countries across Europe.
After Coldplay, Enter Shikari, Katy Perry, and Sam Fender all adopted a levy of their own, it was reported in late 2024 that the Culture, Media and Sport Committee had welcomed the UK government’s backing of the proposed ticket levy.
On top of that, while 2023 proved to be the worst year on record, with 125 grassroots music venues shutting their doors, earlier this year new figures showed that 93 per cent of fans were all in favour of the £1 donations.
The push for big-name artists and arenas to donate back into the industry has so far led to £500,000 being raised for grassroots music venues, thanks to backing from the likes of Pulp and Mumford & Sons, and news that The O2 will be making a donation to the Music Venue Trust (MVT) every time a new artist headlines the arena.
The rising prices hitting venues in 2026 come as the Labour government announced back in January that they were looking to strengthen the live music sector by cracking down on scalpers, enforcing a price cap on how much touts can re-sell tickets for, and looking into controversial ‘dynamic pricing’ practices.
After facing pressure from the likes of Radiohead, Sam Fender, Dua Lipa and more to stay true to their word, it was reported last month that new laws were being introduced. The new rules state that it is illegal to re-sell tickets for live events above original cost – which will collectively save fans £112million per year.
Massive fees from secondary ticket sellers will also be stamped out.
