Italy To Host Biggest Ticketed Concert Ever 220,000 tickets sold for Italian star Vasco Rossi Concert

The layout for the biggest ticketed concert ever that will take place July 1 at Italy’s Enzo Ferrari Park, Modena, when Italian superstar Vasco Rossi will perform to 220,000 paying guests.

The biggest ticketed concert ever will take place July 1 at Italy’s Enzo Ferrari Park, Modena, when Italian superstar Vasco Rossi will perform to 220,000 paying guests.

The massive outdoor concert’s sales shatter the old records of 198,000 paying fans at an A-Ha concert in Rio de Janeiro’s Maracanà Stadium in 1991; Tina Turner’s 188,000-attendance at the same Brazilian stadium in 1988 and Paul McCartney’s 185,000-paying crowd at the venue in 1990.

The concert is being organized by Big Bang promotion agency and sold on the Vivaticket ticketing platform, both belonging to the Bologna group Best Union.

"We are setting a new world record,” said Luca Montebugnoli, chairman of Best Union, “It will be the largest and greatest rock concert ever organized in the history of music.”

Montebugnoli said the discussions started last year with Rossi, and the plans were put in place in January.

“This concert will celebrate Vasco Rossi’s 40-year anniversary from when he sang his first song in Modena,” said Montebugnoli.

The tickets have three levels of pricing ranging from €50 ($56.60) to €75 ($85.03), which is the largest area. The average price, said Montebugnoli, is €68 ($77.09), making the concert's gross potential €14.9 million ($16.9 million). There are no seats; all tickets are for standing spots.

Ferarri Park, Modena, Italy, has been under construction for months to set the stage for Viasco Rossi's concert.

The show will be four hours with several supporting acts. Fans are welcome into the venue an hour before the show starts, said Montebugnoli, who expects the ingress process to run quickly and smoothly.

Security will be tight. Rowdy, sometimes violent, football fans (soccer in North America) are nothing new to Europe. “There will be 1,300 local security staff,” said Montebugnoli.

Fans will have to go through two levels of security. The first level is a pat-down and then the fans have to go through metal detectors. On top of this, there will be 55 cameras equipped with facial recognition software.

Montebugnoli also pointed out that all tickets are “named tickets" and will use Near Field Communication (NFC) technology. “This means that each ticket has all the information of the customer who purchased the ticket in the system,” explained Montebugnoli.

“At the entrance, we will have hand-held readers that recognize if the ticket is right or not, and if it also matches the name on the ticket and to the credit card that was used to purchase the ticket. Anyone who shows up without all the correct information and credit card is not getting in,” he said. “All the technology runs in both the office control and in the ticketing system. We’re creating a local network into the park and we’re able to track the ticket from any entrance.”

“The administration has been preparing for this event, side by side with Best Union for many months,” said the Mayor of Modena, Gian Carlo Muzzarelli. “As soon as the artist, one of the most loved rock stars in Italy, told us that he would have loved to have a concert here in summer 2017 — this year it’s special for him because it’s 40 years of career, and he started right here in Modena —we began to work, to celebrate him as he deserves.”

“The location, the Parco Ferrari, is quoted in one of his songs, 'Colpa d’Alfredo,' as 'Modena Park,'” said Muzzarelli, “and we chose this as the title of the event. The park is perfect because it’s big, it is near the train station, not more than four to five kilometers from many thousands of parking spots, and it is surrounded by long avenues.”

In a way, Muzzarelli thinks Ferrari Park has been ready for this concert for 40 years. “In 1977, 40 years ago, the same year Vasco Rossi started his adventure as a rock star, Parco Ferrari hosted a huge rally: the secretary of the Italian Communist Party, Enrico Berlinguer, spoke in front of more than 500,000 people. So we can say that the park was ready since the beginning, but now there’s a huge stage, every safety measure, a new fiber optic network and everything else needed to give every possible comfort to the 220,000 people attending the event.”

There will be concessions in the form of food trucks, controlled by Best Union.

Italian superstar Vasco Rossi.

Vasco Rossi has been breaking records for a long time. His album, Gli Spari Sopra ("The Shots Above") released in 1993 went platinum 10 times. In 2007, "Basta Poco" ("A Little Is Enough"), topped the Italian charts for 21 weeks, making it Italy’s best-selling single of 2007.

Fans who did not get a ticket should not despair, Montebugnoli said there are plans to set maxi-screens in the venue, and the concert will be broadcast in over 140 cinemas throughout Italy.

“The community of Modena is part of the event,” said Mayor Muzzarelli. “Twenty-seven thousand out of the 220,000 come from Modena, and we’ll have in two squares of the historical center, Piazza Grande and Piazza Roma; two big screens, and we estimate 15,000-20,000 more will be watching the concert.”

The impact to the city of Modena will be huge, at least for a few days, according to the mayor. “For a couple of days, Friday, June 30 and Saturday, July 1, the city will be impacted in many areas and many streets will be accessible only by bikes, and walking, of course, and we expect many traffic jams.”

“But we’re hosting a show that will be remembered for years and years,” added Muzzarelli, “so we know that the citizens, despite a couple of tough days, will be proud of it, and I want to thank everyone of them for their patience and collaboration.” </s> Italian singer-songwriter Vasco Rossi performs on stage during a concert at Parco Ferrari in Modena, Italy, 1July 2017. More than 200 thousand of people came to attend her concert. ANSA/ALESSANDRO DI MEO </s> Modena, June 30 - Rock star Vasco Rossi, 65, has said his concert Saturday in Modena to celebrate a 40-year-long career will be a "party against fear". "We will not change our habits - the enemy is fear and we are not afraid," the rocker said Thursday night during a sound-check event at the Modena Park ahead of the concert, which is expected to attract a record 220,000 people. Some 10,000 fans gathered for the Thursday event, the general rehearsal ahead of Saturday's concert celebrating the rock star's "first 40 years in music". Twenty-two people died and 116 were injured in attack at an Ariana Grande concert at the Manchester Arena in May - one of the latest in a number of terror attacks that have rocked Great Britain and Europe. </s> ROME — Italian police investigating a deadly nightclub stampede said Sunday they found a pepper spray can and were questioning dozens of witnesses after accounts by concertgoers that a teenage boy had sprayed an irritating substance, causing the mad rush by the crowd to flee.

It wasn’t known whether the can found was the one that apparently set off the stampede about 1 a.m. Saturday in a crowd awaiting a rapper’s performance in the Lanterna Azzurra (Blue Lantern) disco in the small town of Corinaldo, said the Carabiniere paramilitary police commander of Ancona province, Col. Cristian Carrozza.

He also declined to confirm Italian media reports that a 16-year-old boy had been identified as the sprayer and would be questioned by juvenile court officials.

Five teenagers, all juveniles, and a woman who had accompanied her 11-year-old daughter to the concert, died in the crush of fleeing concertgoers who toppled over a railing atop a cement ramp outside an exit. The railing gave way, sending young people tumbling over it and landing on top of each other in the area below the ramp, about 1.5 feet below.

On Saturday, prosecutors and Italy’s premier and interior minister told reporters that nearly 1,400 tickets had been sold, while the disco could safely hold only 870 people, with the capacity of the room of the concert itself set at about 460.

On Sunday, Carrozza said a count of ticket stubs indicated that about 600 tickets were used for entry. It was unclear if others might have gotten in without having tickets checked by club personnel.

One of the DJs, Marco Cecchini, said he was sure that more than just one room of the disco was open, in addition to the one with the 460-person capacity.

“I’ve done 40-50 evenings in that place, and, sincerely, there weren’t so many people. I’d estimate maybe 800-900 people, but all the rooms were open,” the Italian news agency ANSA quoted Cecchini, who is the son of one of the disco’s managers, as saying.

Several parents whose children had gone to the concert Saturday brought cell phones to police to show videos of the disco’s premises in case the visuals could help in the investigation, ANSA said.

Seven of the more than 50 people injured in the stampede remained in critical condition Sunday, while the remaining patients were either already discharged or about to be discharged after their condition improved, doctors said.

After Interior Minister Matteo Salvini insisted that safety codes for public places be rigorously respected, police overnight shut down two discos in the south, near the port city of Salerno, for apparent overcrowding.

Frances D’Emilio is an Associated Press writer. </s> Italian police investigating a deadly disco stampede said they have found a pepper spray can and were questioning dozens of witnesses following accounts of a teenage boy spraying an irritating substance, triggering a rush by the crowd to flee.

It is not known if the can found was the one whose spray apparently set off the stampede at around 1am on Saturday among a crowd awaiting a rapper’s performance in the Lanterna Azzurra (Blue Lantern) disco in Corinaldo, a small town in the Marche region of east-central Italy, Police Colonel Cristian Carrozza of the Ancona Carabinieri told reporters.

He also declined to confirm Italian media reports that a 16-year-old boy had been identified as the sprayer and would be questioned by juvenile court officials.

Five teenagers, all minors, and a woman who had accompanied her 11-year-old daughter to the concert, died in the crush as fleeing concertgoers toppled over a railing at the top of a 1.5m (4.9ft) cement ramp outside an exit. The railing gave way, sending young people tumbling over it and landing on top of each other below.

On Saturday, prosecutors and Italy’s premier and interior minister told reporters that nearly 1,400 tickets had been sold, while the disco could safely hold only 870 people, and the capacity of the concert room was about 460.

On Sunday, Carrozza said a count of ticket stubs indicated that about 600 tickets had been used for entry. It was unclear if other people might have got in without having tickets checked by disco personnel.

One of the DJs, Marco Cecchini, told reporters he was sure that more than just one room of the disco was open, in addition to the one with the 460-person capacity.

“I’ve done 40-50 evenings in that place, and, sincerely, there weren’t so many people. I’d estimate maybe 800-900 people, but all the rooms were open,” the Italian news agency ANSA quoted Cecchini, who is the son of one of the disco’s managers, as saying.

Several parents whose children had gone to the concert on Saturday brought police mobile phones to show videos of the disco’s premises in case the images could help in the investigation, ANSA said.

Many parents and patrons have said the disco was jam-packed.

Carrozza said that on Saturday, police had taken accounts from more than 80 people, and many more concertgoers were being questioned on Sunday.

Seven of the more than 50 people injured in the stampede remained in a critical condition on Sunday while the remaining patients had either already been discharged or were about to be discharged after their condition had improved, doctors said.

Meanwhile, interior minister Matteo Salvini has insisted that safety codes for public places should be rigorously respected, and police overnight shut down two discos in the south, near the port city of Salerno, for apparent overcrowding. </s> ROME — Italian police investigating a deadly disco stampede said Sunday they found a pepper spray can and were questioning dozens of witnesses following accounts by concertgoers that a teenage boy had sprayed an irritating substance, triggering the mad rush by the crowd to flee.

It wasn't known if the can found was the one whose spray apparently set off the stampede about 1 a.m. Saturday in a crowd awaiting a rapper's performance in the Lanterna Azzurra (Blue Lantern) disco in Corinaldo, a small town in the Marche region of east-central Italy, the Carabiniere paramilitary police commander of Ancona province, Col. Cristian Carrozza, told reporters.

He also declined to confirm Italian media reports that a 16-year-old boy had been identified as the sprayer and would be questioned by juvenile court officials.

Five teens, all juveniles, and a woman who had accompanied her 11-year-old daughter to the concert, died in the crush of fleeing concertgoers who toppled over a railing atop a cement ramp outside an exit. The railing gave way, sending young people tumbling over it and landing atop of each other in the area below the ramp, about 5 feet below.

On Saturday, prosecutors and Italy's premier and interior minister told reporters that nearly 1,400 tickets had been sold, while the disco could safely hold only 870 people, with the capacity of the room of the concert itself set at about 460.

On Sunday, Carrozza said a count of ticket stubs indicated that about 600 tickets were used for entry. It was unclear if others might have gotten in without having tickets checked by disco personnel.

One of the DJs, Marco Cecchini, told reporters he was sure that more than just one room of the disco was open, in addition to the one with the 460-person capacity.

"I've done 40-50 evenings in that place, and, sincerely, there weren't so many people. I'd estimate maybe 800-900 people, but all the rooms were open," the Italian news agency ANSA quoted Cecchini, who is the son of one of the disco's managers, as saying.

Several parents whose children had gone to the concert on Saturday brought police cellphones to show videos of the disco's premises in case the visuals could help in the investigation, ANSA said.

Many parents and patrons have said the disco was jam-packed.

Carrozza said that on Saturday police had taken accounts from more than 80 people, and many more concertgoers were being questioned on Sunday.

Seven of the more than 50 people injured in the stampede remained in critical condition Sunday while the remaining patients were either already discharged or about to be discharged after their condition improved, doctors said.

After Interior Minister Matteo Salvini insisted that safety codes for public places be rigorously respected, police overnight shut down two discos in the south, near the port city of Salerno, for apparent overcrowding. </s> Italian police investigating a deadly disco stampede said they found a pepper spray can and were questioning dozens of witnesses yesterday following accounts by concertgoers that a teenage boy had sprayed an irritating substance, triggering the mad rush by the crowd to flee.

Italian police investigating a deadly disco stampede said they found a pepper spray can and were questioning dozens of witnesses yesterday following accounts by concertgoers that a teenage boy had sprayed an irritating substance, triggering the mad rush by the crowd to flee.

It wasn't known if the can found was the one whose spray apparently set off the stampede at about 1am Saturday in a crowd awaiting a rapper's performance in the Lanterna Azzurra (Blue Lantern) disco in Corinaldo, a small town in the Marche region of east-central Italy, the Carabiniere paramilitary police commander of Ancona province, Colonel Cristian Carrozza, told reporters.

He also declined to confirm Italian media reports that a 16-year-old boy had been identified as the sprayer and would be questioned by juvenile court officials.

Five teens, all juveniles, and a woman who had accompanied her 11-year-old daughter to the concert, died in the crush of fleeing concertgoers who toppled over a railing atop a cement ramp outside an exit. The railing gave way, sending young people tumbling over it and landing atop of each other in the area below the ramp, about 1.5 meters below.

On Saturday, prosecutors and Italy's Interior Minister Matteo Salvini told reporters that nearly 1,400 tickets had been sold, while the disco could safely hold only 870 people, with the capacity of the room of the concert itself set at about 460.

Yesterday, Col Carrozza said a count of ticket stubs indicated about 600 tickets were used for entry. It was unclear if others might have gotten in without having tickets checked by disco personnel.

One of the DJs, Marco Cecchini, told reporters he was sure that more than just one room of the disco was open, in addition to the one with the 460-person capacity.

"I've done 40-50 evenings in that place, and, sincerely, there weren't so many people. I'd estimate maybe 800-900 people, but all the rooms were open," the Italian news agency ANSA quoted Mr Cecchini, who is the son of one of the disco's managers, as saying.

Seven of the more than 50 people injured in the stampede remained in critical condition yesterday while the remaining patients were either already discharged or about to be discharged after their condition improved. </s> ROME — Italian police investigating a deadly disco stampede said Sunday they found a pepper spray can and were questioning dozens of witnesses Sunday following accounts by concertgoers that a teenage boy had sprayed an irritating substance, triggering the mad rush by the crowd to flee.

It wasn’t known if the can found was the one whose spray apparently set off the stampede about 1 a.m. Saturday in a crowd awaiting a rapper’s performance in the Lanterna Azzurra disco in Corinaldo, a small town in east-central Italy, police said.

A police official also declined to confirm Italian media reports that a 16-year-old boy had been identified as the sprayer and would be questioned by juvenile court officials.

Five teens and a woman who had accompanied her 11-year-old daughter to the concert died in the crush of fleeing concertgoers who toppled over a railing atop a cement ramp outside an exit.

Seven of the more than 50 people injured in the stampede remained in critical condition Sunday, doctors said.

On Saturday, prosecutors and Italy’s premier and interior minister told reporters that nearly 1,400 tickets had been sold, while the disco could safely hold only 870 people. </s> Transcript for 2 criminal investigations after 6 killed during concert in Italy

And news tonight about the deadly stampede in Italy. Police launching two criminal investigations into the chaos. Two people died. Authorities believe the club was overcrowded. The crush of people likely ignited by somebody using pepper spray. Here's Julia Macfarlane. Reporter: This was the moment the horror unfolded. Investigators are reviewing this bystander's footage of the accident at that Italian nightclub late Friday. New details tonight. Italian police tell ABC news two parallel criminal investigations are now under way. One, the suspected use of an irritant spray, such as mace or pepper spray, that is believed to have started the stampede. The other, violations of the nightclub's occupancy restrictions. The venue was only supposed to hold around 800 people. That night, almost 1,400 tickets had been sold for the event. However, it's not clear how many people were in attendance. Ticket sales are disorganized in Italy. Events are often oversold. It's one theory that investigators are looking into, as footage circulates of the disco's walkway, crumbling under the weight of so many people rushing out all at once. Police haven't confirmed reports in Italian media that a minor is suspected of spraying that irritant substance, sparking the panic, but they have told ABC news that a statement will be released tomorrow. Tom?
Italian rock singer Vasco Rossi broke the world record of biggest ticketed concert with 220,000 paying guests hosted at Enzo Ferrari Park in Modena, Italy.