Eminem smashed attendance records at the MCG on Sunday
Eminem narrowly smashed the concert attendance records at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), drawing 80,708 fans to his Rapture show on Sunday night.
The sports and entertainment venue’s official capacity is 100,024.
The previous record was set by the multi-act Sound Relief concert in 2009, which the MCG has marked at 80,518.
Guns N’Roses drew 73,756 in 2017, a show also promoted by TEG Dainty.
President and CEO of TEG DAINTY, Paul Dainty, said this morning, “It is an outstanding achievement for Eminem to break the live concert attendance record at the MCG with a total of 80,708 fans in the audience.
“Eminem is one of the greatest showmen in the world with a fiercely loyal Australian fan base that continues to grow with each tour.
“He is no stranger to selling out stadium shows but this new record is just phenomenal.”
On the current 2019 Rapture tour, Eminem has sold a total of 300,000 tickets to his 5 stadium shows across the country, to stunning reviews that emphasised he was at the top of his game.
The visit wraps up in Perth on Wednesday before heading to New Zealand.
Eminem’s previous Australians visit, 2014’s Rapture Tour and Lose Yourself (2011), were both sold out.
Sound Relief was a star-studded effort by the music industry to raise money for the Red Cross Victorian Bushfire Appeal.
It was simultaneously held at the Sydney Cricket Grounds and televised nationally.
The Melbourne end featured appearances by Kings Of Leon, Midnight Oil, Split Enz, Paul Kelly, Hunters & Collectors, Wolfmother, Kasey Chambers & Shane Nicholson, Jet, Jack Johnson and Bliss N Eso, among others.
The highest attendance at the MCG was by US evangelist Billy Graham, who in 1959 attracted an estimated crowd of more than 130,000 (some estimates go as high as 143,750), many of whom had spilled onto the arena.
The two sporting attendance milestones are 121, 696 for the 1970 VFL Grand Final and 100,022 for the 2018 AFL Grand Final.
Eminem’s achievement last night was for a single concert only.
In 1993, Paul McCartney, U2 and Madonna held 3 concerts, with the highest attendances for a music concert at MCG, with 147,241 tickets sold.