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September 19, 2024

Iron Maiden Announces 50th Anniversary World Tour

Iron Maiden announced the first dates of their 50th anniversary world tour, which will start in May 2025.Marking five decades since bassist Steve Harris formed the band, the Run for Your Lives shows will focus on their first nine albums, from 1980’s self-titled debut to 1992’s Fear of the Dark.Initial dates across the U.K., Ireland and Europe can be seen below, with more to follow.READ MORE: How Iron Maiden Became ‘King of the Castle’ With ‘Powerslave’“Next year is a very special one for Iron Maiden and we’re going to be giving our fans a once-in-a-lifetime live experience,” singer Bruce Dickinson said in a statement. “This is a tour that’s gonna put a smile on your face and a cheer in your throat.“If you’ve seen us before, then get ready to take that experience to a whole new level. If you’ve never seen us before, then what the hell have you been waiting for? Now’s your chance to find out what you’ve been missing! Iron Maiden’s definitely gonna get ya!”Band manager Rod Smallwood outlined their achievements over the past five decades, saying, “With well over 100 million albums sold and almost 2,500 shows in 64 countries and counting, to countless millions of fans, we are all still loving every second.”Watch Iron Maiden’s Run For Your Lives Tour TrailerHe promised the group was planning on “pulling out all the stops” for the shows. “We will cover classics and fan favorites from the first nine albums … many of which we haven’t played in years and many we will likely never play again in the future,” he added.“We have already been hard at work for months putting together an even more spectacular and elaborate new show, which will bring the songs to life more than we have ever been able to do before. This is going to be a huge couple of years … and we are very excited about what we have up our sleeves for you fans throughout the whole of our 50th year.”The tour includes an appearance at London Stadium, the home of Harris’ favorite soccer team, West Ham United; he, guitarists Dave Murray and Adrian Smith, and drummer Nicko McBrain, grew up in the surrounding area. With a capacity of 60,000, it will be the biggest non-festival show Iron Maiden has ever performed.Iron Maiden, Run for Your Lives World Tour5/27 – Budapest Aréna, Budapest, Hungary5/31 – Letnany Airport, Prague, Czech Republic6/01 – TIPOS Arena, Bratislava, Slovakia6/05 – Trondheim Rocks, Trondheim, Norway (Festival)6/07 – SR–Bank Arena, Stavanger, Norway6/09 – Royal Arena, Copenhagen, Denmark6/12 – 3Arena, Stockholm, Sweden6/13 – 3Arena, Stockholm, Sweden6/16 – Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland6/21 – Utilita Arena, Birmingham, England6/22 – Co–Op Live, Manchester, England6/25 – Malahide Castle, Dublin, Ireland6/28 – London Stadium, London, England6/30 – OVO Hydro, Glasgow, Scotland6/03 – Eurockéennes Festival, Belfort, France (Festival)6/05 – Estadio Cívitas Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain6/06 – MEO Arena, Lisbon, Portugal6/09 – Hallenstadion, Zurich, Switzerland6/11 – Veltins–Arena, Gelsenkirchen, Germany6/13 – Stadio Euganeo, Padova, Italy6/15 – Bürgerweide, Bremen, Germany6/17 – Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna, Austria6/19 – Paris La Défense Arena, Paris, France6/23 – GelreDome, Arnhem, Netherlands6/25 – Deutsche Bank Park, Frankfurt, Germany6/26 – Cannstatter Wasen, Stuttgart, Germany6/29 – Waldbühne, Berlin, GermanyAug. 02 – PGE Narodowy, Warsaw, PolandIron Maiden Albums Ranked When ranking Iron Maiden albums, perhaps the most striking thing is that they succeeded despite changing lead singers on three separate occasions.Gallery Credit: Eduardo Rivadavia