𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Sheeran fans and ticket holders are torn about the situation. Some have said that without all the supporting acts, the show is no longer what they paid for.

A woman who spoke to the BBC on her way inside the stadium on Saturday said she bought tickets on the resale market after someone put them up for sale.

“Music is music, I’m not here for politics… We have sympathies for the Palestinians… no one should have to go through war,” she said, adding that she did not think other bands dropping out would impact the show.

Damien Given, who is from Northern Ireland and has tickets to Saturday’s show, told the BBC that he felt that Macklemore was treated “very, very wrong” and thought Sheeran was not being transparent with fans.

Given said that Sheeran can’t suddenly say he’s not political because he had previously voiced support for Ukraine after Russia invaded the country.

But another fan named Patti Ann told the BBC that Sheeran was in a “no-win situation”.

“I back [Sheeran] 100% for his decision,” she said. “I feel like he has an obligation and a contract with his venues, and sometimes, financially, you can’t get out of those types of things.”

The controversy has also snowballed into other areas of Sheeran’s career. Ireland’s Classic Hits Radio announced it was removing Sheeran’s music from its playlists because of feedback from listeners who had expressed “disappointment and concern” over his US tour. Sheeran was raised in England but has said he identifies culturally as Irish.