Music
Taylor Swift Cancels Her Eras Tour Shows In Vienna Due To Terrorist Threats
Police arrested two men who reportedly planned attacks at Ernst-Happel Stadium.
Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour concerts in Vienna, Austria, have been canceled a day before she was set to take the stage after two suspects were arrested for reportedly plotting a terrorist attack on the venue. She was scheduled to perform three shows at the Ernst-Happel Stadium from Aug. 8-10.
The singer’s official fan account, Taylor Nation, first confirmed the cancellations by sharing promoter Barracuda Music’s post on its Instagram Story. “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 announcement read.
Swift’s website also confirmed the canceled dates, stating that all tickets would be refunded in the next 10 business days.
At an Aug. 7 press conference, Vienna police announced that a 19-year-old citizen was arrested that morning after authorities suspected that explosives were being stored at their home and chemical substances were found. Another arrest was being carried out at the same time, according to CNN.
Police claimed the two suspects had undertaken “concrete preparatory measures” for a terrorist attack. “From the current standpoint of the investigation we assume that the target of the attack were events in the Vienna region,” they said, without referring to Swift’s shows directly.
Swift’s Cancelled Shows
In December, Swift told TIME that only an uncontrollable event could cause her to cancel any of her Eras Tour shows. “I know I’m going on that stage whether I’m sick, injured, heartbroken, uncomfortable, or stressed,” she said. “That’s part of my identity as a human being now. If someone buys a ticket to my show, I’m going to play it unless we have some sort of force majeure.”
This marks the first time on her record-breaking trek that Swift had to call off shows, but she did run into some hiccups on the South American leg in November. She had to push back her second Buenos Aires show by two days due to severe weather, and was forced to postpone her second Rio de Janeiro show due to extreme heat, after one fan collapsed and died the night prior.
