Ed Sheeran breaks U2’s record for highest grossing tour ever 

Ed Sheeran. COURTESY PHOTO

In his latest album, Ed Sheeran sings about how his baby doesn’t want his money, but if she did, there is plenty of it.

And now his Divide Tour has been named the highest-grossing tour of all time, breaking a record set by U2 that had stood for eight years.

The Divide tour began in March 2017, and will have encompassed 255 shows when it finishes with four homecoming gigs in Ipswich later this month. So far it has grossed $736m (£607m), breaking U2’s record of $735m, with 12 dates still left to play.

It has also been named the most attended tour of all time. When it finishes, more than 8.5m people across 43 countries will have seen Sheeran perform, breaking U2’s record of 7.3m.

“This is amazing,” Ed says of the record. “I feel very lucky to have experienced all of the wonderful countries and crowds over the past 2.5 years. Thank you to the fans and everyone who made it possible.”

On Instagram, Ed Sheeran said: “Thanks so much for each and every one of you who have come to a show. 12 shows left, will never forget it.”

Sheeran’s manager Stuart Camp told Pollstar, who amassed the tour data: “What Ed has accomplished is truly incredible … to even be in the same ballpark as [U2] or spoken in the same sentence with a touring act like that is very humbling”.