Tickets for Barack Obama's live show in Scotland have been criticized as "extortionate" by poverty campaigners, with some seats priced at nearly £400 and front-row packages exceeding £1800.
Ticket prices and touting
On Ticketmaster, the former US president is charging almost £400 for some seats and more than £1800 for a front seat plus photo package. Ticket touts have further inflated prices, snapping up some of the cheapest tickets for £55 and listing them on Viagogo for £173.
The appearance at the OVO Hydro on October 14 coincides with the US marking 250 years since the Declaration of Independence. Obama's talk will outline what he believes could come next.
Campaigner's reaction
Anti-poverty campaigner Sean Clerkin expressed shock at the pricing for a former president who was supposed to be a "man of the people". He said: "I'm sure there will be lots of Scots who will be simply priced out by these eye-watering ticket costs. There is something obscene about these charges, coming at a time when homelessness is off the scale and poverty is rife. It also sets the price bar higher for other performers and that will mean more are tempted to price out ordinary people."
Obama's appeal and packages
Obama has maintained significant appeal since leaving office in 2017, credited with advances in the US economy and social care. Through the Obama Foundation, he has established programmes for emerging leaders across continents.
The Glasgow show's promotional material promises "a call to hope, resilience, and the belief that ordinary people, together, can still shape what comes next". Despite this focus on ordinary people, Photo VIP Packages were selling yesterday for £1877. The package includes a photo opportunity with Obama for two people, subject to advance security, a designated VIP check-in, and a copy of Obama's book A Promised Land, though not necessarily signed.
Tout activity and context
On Viagogo, numerous tickets were available from touts, with a £400 ticket bumped up to £660 and a £55 ticket to £173. The Glasgow appearance marks Obama's return to Scotland nearly five years after he addressed world leaders at the COP26 summit hosted by Glasgow.
During his 2021 visit, Obama said younger generations were right to be angry about the failure of predecessors to tackle the climate crisis adequately. Since then, under Donald Trump, the US has abandoned many climate pledges. Obama's Glasgow show comes nine years after his first visit to Scotland, when he spoke at a charity dinner in Edinburgh and played golf in St Andrews.
The tour follows live events in Dublin and London last year. It begins in Belfast on October 13, moves to Glasgow, and concludes in Manchester on October 15.
