Taylor Swift's Eras tour gigs in Austria have been canceled due to a thwarted terror attempt.The unexpected move, which might have a substantial impact on Vienna's companies, has upset fans and highlighted the vulnerability of large events as vulnerable targets for terrorist networks and spree murderers.
Swift was supposed to perform three gigs in the European city from Thursday to Saturday, but they have all been canceled, according to Barracuda Music, the promoter for her concerts in Austria.
"With confirmation from government officials of a planned terrorist attack at Ernst Happel Stadium, we have no choice but to cancel the three scheduled shows for everyone's safety," Barracuda Music stated on Wednesday in an online post.
Swift's official website also said the gigs were canceled. CNN has contacted her agents for comment.
At a news conference in the capital, police said a 19-year-old Austrian citizen, whom they classified as an ISIS sympathizer, was detained Wednesday morning in Ternitz, Lower Austria, with another arrest made later in Vienna.
The suspects were "radicalized by the internet," with a 19-year-old vowing loyalty to ISIS' commander in July, according to authorities.
Later Wednesday, police stated that they had made "further detentions" but did not provide a number or any other information.
Authorities stated the suspects had made "concrete preparatory measures" for a terrorist attack after investigators thought explosives were placed at the suspect's Ternitz residence.
According to the Associated Press, police have also secured chemical compounds at the 19-year-old's house and are evaluating them.
"From the current standpoint of the investigation we assume that the target of the attack were events in the Vienna region," the police reported.
Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer described the cancelation as a "bitter disappointment for all fans in Austria" in a post on X, but said that a catastrophe had been avoided.
"We live in a time in which violent means are being used to attack our Western way of life," said Mr. Trump. "Islamist terrorism jeopardizes security and freedom in many Western countries. We shall continue to fiercely defend our ideals, including freedom and democracy, rather than abandon them.
Barracuda Music stated that all tickets to the canceled performances will be immediately reimbursed within the next ten business days.
Swift's record-breaking Eras Tour began on March 18, 2023, in Glendale, Arizona, and has since been extended multiple times. It has subsequently been across the United States, South America, Asia, and Australia, and is now on its European leg before returning to North America.
Given the financial bonanza that Swift's gigs offer, canceling three high-profile shows was not an easy choice for Viennese authorities.
Her tour has boosted local economies, with an estimated $380 million generated in London, according to the city's mayor in June.It's a striking reminder of her star status and the "Swiftonomics" that have followed her massive tour.
Vienna was due to be the European leg's penultimate stop, with Swift set to play five nights in London's Wembley Stadium next week before heading to Canada for the tour's final dates in November and December.
Authorities said they expected roughly 65,000 people to attend each of Swift's Vienna gigs, with an additional 15,000-20,000 admirers outside the stadium.
Swift stated on Instagram the day before the Vienna cancellation: "I can't believe we have two cities left on the European portion of The Eras Tour. It's really flown by. "See you soon, Vienna!"
The cancelation has left fans shocked and unhappy, including several who had come to Vienna for the events.
Vanessa Szombathelyi, 24, went from Ireland to Hungary, where she and her best friend intended to drive across the border to Vienna for the event. It would have been her first Swift concert after becoming a fan in 2018, and she had been looking forward to it since purchasing the tickets last summer.
"(I'm) feeling mixed emotions, everything from tears to anger," she told CNN on Wednesday, adding that she was relieved the perpetrators had been apprehended.
In recent years, Islamist jihadists have targeted music concerts and venues across Europe.In November 2015, ISIS militants attacked the Bataclan theater and other sites in Paris, killing at least 130 people.
In May 2017, the organization claimed responsibility for the suicide bombing of an Ariana Grande performance in Manchester, England, which killed 22 people.
Swift herself has described these attacks as her "biggest fear."In a 2019 essay for Elle Magazine, she wrote: "After the Manchester Arena bombing and the Vegas concert shooting, I was completely terrified to go on tour this time because I didn't know how we were going to keep 3 million fans safe over seven months," referring to the 2017 mass shooting at a Las Vegas music festival that killed 60 people, the deadliest by a lone gunman in the United States to date.
"There was a tremendous amount of planning, expense, and effort put into keeping my fans safe," she said at the time, adding that similar concerns have extended over into her personal life, with the celebrity carrying emergency first-aid supplies such as bandages for gunshot or stab wounds.