US rock band Foo Fighters have now sold out their surprise Dublin show, with all tickets for the band’s intimate performance at The Academy on 23 February 2026 snapped up within hours of going on sale.
Promoter MCD Productions had announced that tickets would go on sale in person only from 12pm on Sunday (22 February) at the 3Olympia Theatre Box Office on Dame Street. By Sunday afternoon, tickets were completely gone, with no option for resale, transfer or additional release due to the strict sales conditions put in place.
Fans queued for hours in Dublin city centre in scenes described as a scramble, with a two-ticket limit per person in place for the 850-capacity venue. With short notice and no online sale option, hundreds lined up from early morning in the hope of securing entry to what has now become one of the most exclusive gigs of the year.
@radionova100fm
After MCD announced a last-minute Foo Fighters gig at The Academy this Monday night, 23 Feb, fans rushed to The Olympia Theatre to snatch tickets that were only available in person, and were framed by very strict rules - the person attending the gig had to be present for the sale and there was a maximum of 2 tickets per person, among other conditions. Tickets are now SOLD OUT
Lifelong fan Colm Scott-Byrne told the Independent he was just “so happy” to secure his tickets, adding: “I literally can’t even put it into words, I’m just so excited.” Monday night’s show will mark the “25th or 26th” time he has seen the band live. After his wife spotted the announcement on Instagram “one minute” after it was posted, he ordered a taxi from his home in Perrystown in south Dublin “straight away”.
Although tickets did not officially go on sale until noon, the first few hundred people who arrived at the box office inside the 3Olympia Theatre were ushered indoors before access was closed at around 11.15am. Amy Malloy said: “We didn’t know what’s going on ’till about 10 minutes before they started selling the tickets and they told us we were all guaranteed ones.” She added that the crowd began high-fiving each other once they realised they had secured entry.
For some, the timing could not have been better. Dublin fan Kate Beatty, who had just celebrated her birthday, told the Independent: “I’m so excited for tomorrow night, I’m a huge fan.” She added: “Me and my boyfriend are going, and I’m just finishing off my birthday weekend so I can’t wait.” After queueing for around an hour and a half, she said she came prepared: “I thought it was going to be longer, so I brought the goods with me, the chocolate, the water just in case.”
Paola Miletic, a fan of 20 years, arrived at 10am and secured two tickets. “I’m excited to go to the gig tomorrow. I got my ticket, I was standing since 10am,” she said, admitting she initially thought “it’s not going to happen” until she saw the scale of the queue.
Others travelled significant distances, with Michael Bourke from Cork and Harry Luck from Kerry arriving just before 10am after queueing for hours. Siblings Cuileann and Nollaig McHugh, who waited around 90 minutes, said they were “buzzing” for the show after spotting the announcement on Instagram.
Once the allocation was exhausted, that was it. There is no resale, no transfers and no exceptions, meaning anyone who missed out will not get another opportunity to purchase.
The intimate gig followed online speculation that Dave Grohl and his bandmates were in Ireland, after reported sightings of their van in Dingle over the weekend. The band had also recently appeared on The Graham Norton Show, further fuelling rumours that an Irish stop was imminent.
Tickets were priced at €99.00 including fees and were sold on a strictly first come, first served basis, with a two-ticket limit per person.
However, it was the unusually tight sales conditions that defined this release.
Tickets were made available in person only at the 3Olympia Theatre Box Office and were valid solely for the 23 February Academy show. The age restriction was strictly 18+.
Those attending had to be present at the time of purchase with their physical photo ID and physical credit or debit card. If purchasing two tickets, the second guest did not need to be present at purchase, but both attendees must enter the venue together on the night — otherwise, the second ticket would be forfeited.
No transfers were permitted under any circumstances. Cash, contactless payments and digital cards were not accepted — only physical credit and debit cards were allowed.
The lead customer’s name was printed on the ticket and had to match the debit or credit card used for purchase in order to gain entry. Queue cutting was not permitted, and customers requiring accessible tickets were asked to notify venue staff at the time of purchase.
The strict measures effectively eliminated touting and resale, meaning once the tickets sold out, the show was fully closed off to anyone without a valid purchase.
Formed in 1994 by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, Foo Fighters have sold more than 50 million albums worldwide and remain one of the most successful rock bands of the modern era, with multiple Grammy Awards to their name.
For Irish fans lucky enough to secure tickets, the chance to see the band in a venue as intimate as The Academy is exceptionally rare. For everyone else, the window of opportunity closed almost as quickly as it opened.
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